An airplane belonging to a Utah bank mysteriously ended up in Iran, prompting puzzlement and speculation of why a private jet had landed at the Mehrabad Airport in Tehran, the Associated Press reported.
A picture of the jet surfaced Friday, causing international intrigue on why the Bombardier CL-600, with a tail number and a small American flag affixed to the side, traveled to Iran, according to the New York Times.
The bank of Utah is under an arrangement for aviation ownership that has prompted two warnings from a government watchdog in the past year.
However, government officials have not commented on the situation.
Between the U.S. and Iran, federal regulations generally prohibit economic activity, except for some approved activities by the U.S. Department of Treasury, according to the U.S. Department of State.
According to NY Times, "Iranian officials also declined to comment on the purpose of the plane's visit or passengers' identities."
A spokesman for Iran's United Nations mission in New York, Hamid Babaei, said, "We don't have any information in this regard. I refer you to the owner."
"Aviation records show the plane is registered to the Bank of Utah through an arrangement in which the bank serves as a trustee for aircraft owners," the AP reported.
Scott Parkinson, senior vice president for marketing and communication with the Ogden-based bank, said the financial institution is aware of the plane in Iran but is not investigating at this point.
"As far as the legality of that, flying into that country, that's really between the beneficiary and the Department of State, and maybe the FAA," Parkinson said. "Not us."
But the federal government has arranged more scrutiny due to recent practices.
"A government watchdog warned last June and again in January that non-U.S. citizens have registered 5,600 planes with the Federal Aviation Administration through trustees, concealing the owners' identities," the AP reported.
Another plane tied to the Utah bank was in the news recently. A plane from Mexico that went off the runway, flipped over and burst into flames at the Aspen airport was also registered to the bank.
