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The photographer

A reporter who documented the consequences of a massive Brazilian police operation in the Brazilian city has reported how community members came back with mutilated bodies of those who had died.

The victims "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the eyewitness stated. The total contained security forces.

One individual had been decapitated - while others appeared "completely mutilated", he explained. Several bodies showed evidence of stab wounds.

In excess of 120 victims were fatally injured in the Tuesday operation on a criminal gang - the bloodiest action the municipality has seen.

The eyewitness explained that residents first notified him about the operation Tuesday morning by residents of the Alemão neighbourhood, who contacted him telling him gunfire had erupted.

The photographer went to the healthcare center, where the casualties were being brought.

The eyewitness reported that security forces blocked media personnel from entering the operation zone, where the operation were taking place.

"Police officers established a perimeter and declared: 'Media representatives cannot proceed beyond this point'."

However, the photographer, who spent his childhood in the community, explained he succeeded to make his way into the restricted zone, where he continued until the next morning.

He explained during the night, local residents commenced searching the mountainous area which divides Penha from the neighboring Alemão community for family members who were unaccounted for following the security action.

Local people from the Penha area arranged the recovered bodies in a public space - and Itan's photos display the response of the gathered crowd.

"The violence of the situation shook me deeply: the sorrow of relatives, mothers fainting, women carrying children, weeping, furious relatives," the reporter recounted.

Bruno Itan

The official of the state announced that the extensive law enforcement effort deploying about 2,500 security personnel was intended to halting a gang known as Comando Vermelho from increasing their control.

At first, state authorities claimed that "60 suspects plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed during the action.

They have since said that their "preliminary" count indicates that 117 alleged criminals have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has calculated the total number of people killed to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, the criminal organization is the only criminal group which in recent years has been able to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

Experts commonly view among the biggest criminal organizations in the country, in company with another major gang, featuring a timeline spanning over five decades.

Based on Brazilian journalist an expert, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio extensively, the criminal organization "operates like a franchise" with neighborhood bosses forming part of the gang and acting as "business partners".

The criminal group concentrates largely on illegal drug trade, additionally trafficking guns, precious metals, energy resources, alcohol and tobacco.

According to the authorities, organization members are well armed and authorities stated that during the raid, they faced assaults using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of Rio state, Cláudio Castro, labeled Red Command members as criminal extremists and described the four police officers killed in the raid as brave public servants.

However, the count of people killed during the raid has faced scrutiny from international human rights authorities stating they were "appalled".

In a media appearance the next day, Governor Castro supported law enforcement.

"We did not plan to kill anyone. We wanted to take suspects into custody without harm," he stated.

He further explained that the situation had escalated because the suspects fought back: "It occurred of the retaliation they carried out and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The state leader additionally stated that the bodies displayed by locals in the area had been "manipulated".

Via a statement through digital channels, he said that certain victims had been taken of military-style attire he said they had been wearing "in order to shift blame onto the police".

A law enforcement representative representing security forces further reported that military attire, body armor, and firearms" were stripped from the casualties and presented video apparently demonstrating a person cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse