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Bruno Itan

An eyewitness who observed the aftermath of a large-scale Brazilian police operation in the metropolitan area has recounted how local people came back with badly injured victims of the deceased individuals.

The casualties "kept coming: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the photographer described. The total contained law enforcement personnel.

One individual was discovered headless - others were "completely mutilated", he reported. Several bodies showed what appeared to be blade trauma.

More than 120 people lost their lives during the security action targeting an illegal organization - the bloodiest action Rio has experienced.

The photographer stated that residents first notified him about the operation early on Tuesday by local people from the Alemão area, who contacted him alerting him there was a shoot-out.

The eyewitness traveled to a local medical facility, where the bodies were arriving.

Itan explained that the police blocked media personnel from accessing the affected area, where the operation were taking place.

"Law enforcement personnel established a perimeter and announced: 'The press cannot proceed beyond this point'."

But Itan, who spent his childhood in that neighborhood, stated he was able to enter past the security perimeter, where he remained until dawn.

He explained that Tuesday night, area inhabitants commenced searching the hillside which divides Penha from the adjacent Alemão area for family members who had been missing since the police raid.

Local people living in Penha proceeded to place the located casualties in a square - and Itan's photos display the reaction of the gathered crowd.

"The violence of the situation impacted me a lot: the pain of loved ones, parents losing consciousness, expectant spouses, sobbing, angry family members," the reporter recounted.

The eyewitness

The official of Rio state declared that the massive police operation involving around 2,500 security personnel was aimed at halting a criminal group referred to as the criminal faction from growing their influence.

At first, state authorities claimed that "60 suspects along with four officers" lost their lives in the operation.

They have since said that their "preliminary" count indicates that 117 "suspects" lost their lives.

The public legal service, that offers legal help to the poor, has estimated the final tally of people killed at 132.

According to researchers, Red Command stands as the sole illegal faction that in the past few years has been able to expand its territory throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered as a major illegal faction in the country, alongside a rival criminal group, featuring a timeline dating back more than 50 years.

According to reporter Rafael Soares, with extensive experience documenting criminal activity in the city for years, the gang "operates like a franchise" with local criminal leaders affiliating with the group and acting as "operational allies".

The organization engages primarily in drug trafficking, additionally trafficking firearms, precious metals, energy resources, liquor cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that throughout the operation, they encountered resistance using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of the state, the political leader, characterized Red Command members as "narcoterrorists" and referred to the law enforcement personnel who died during the operation as brave public servants.

Nevertheless, the total of fatalities in the security action has received condemnation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights stating they were "appalled".

In a media appearance on Wednesday, the state leader defended the police force.

"There was no objective to result in deaths. We intended to detain everyone safely," he stated.

He continued that the events had escalated as the individuals fought back: "It was a consequence of the counterattack they executed and the overwhelming response by those criminals."

The governor additionally stated that the victims shown by residents in Penha had been "tampered with".

Through a message on online platforms, he said that some of them had been removed of the camouflage clothing that he stated they possessed "to redirect responsibility onto the police".

A law enforcement representative of Rio's civil police force additionally stated that military attire, protective equipment, and weapons" were stripped from the casualties and presented video apparently demonstrating a person cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse