Deportees flown out by ICE are vanishing into Salvadoran prisons, The Atlantic reported, with families unable to trace them.

The US has paid El Salvador to jail deportees. One report put the figure at $4.76 million for holding them.

NPR reported that human rights groups have raised the alarm over the fate of Salvadorans deported from the US.

Lawyers say deportees lose contact with the outside world. Some families do not know if their relatives are alive.

The arrangement has drawn condemnation from rights groups. They call it outsourcing punishment without due process.

El Salvador’s prisons are known for harsh and crowded conditions. The deportation deal between the two countries began earlier this year. Courts are now examining whether the arrangement is legal. Families of the deported say they get no information. Rights groups want the practice stopped.

Lawyers are filing new cases to locate the missing deportees. The story is still developing.