U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials, which pulled some 600 detainees from the 993-bed privately run jail in downtown Albuquerque last summer, told The New Mexican they won't be housing immigrants at the Regional Correctional Center any more.

Most of those immigrants awaiting deportation that would have gone to the Albuquerque lockup will be sent instead to El Paso and other regional facilities, including a soon-to-be-opened immigrant processing center in Otero County, The New Mexican reported.

ICE was housing hundreds of immigration detainees at the former Bernalillo County jail until last summer when the agency expressed "serious doubts" about the ability of Cornell Companies Inc., which runs the center, to provide a safe environment, the paper said.

Immigration lawyers and even a federal judge had complained of subpar conditions for detainees, including sweltering heat, frozen food and poor medical attention, according to The New Mexican.

But Cornell officials said they've been working hard to improve conditions and meet ICE's requirements, and Cornell CEO James Hyman said in a statement that the company disputes whether ICE can change direction without proper notice and a change in its contract, The New Mexican reported.

Meanwhile, Cornell said it will continue looking for other customers to house in the facility, which is leased from Bernalillo County, the paper said.

The U.S. Marshals Service currently houses prisoners at the downtown Albuquerque jail, The New Mexican said. 

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