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Bruno Itan

An eyewitness who documented the consequences of a massive Brazilian police operation in Rio de Janeiro has reported how community members returned with mutilated bodies of the deceased individuals.

The victims "kept coming: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the eyewitness described. Among them were those of police officers.

One of the bodies was found without a head - additional victims were "totally disfigured", he said. Many also had what appeared to be blade trauma.

Over 120 individuals lost their lives during the security action targeting an illegal organization - the most lethal operation the municipality has seen.

The photographer stated that residents first notified him about the operation early on Tuesday by community members from the Alemão area, who reached out informing him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer traveled to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the victims were being brought.

The eyewitness reported that security forces prevented journalists from accessing the operation zone, where the police action were occurring.

"Police officers created a barrier and said: 'Journalists cannot proceed beyond this point'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who was raised in that neighborhood, reported he was able to gain access into the cordoned-off area, where he continued until dawn.

He reported that evening, local residents commenced searching the hillside that separates the community of Penha and the adjacent Alemão area for family members who had been missing following the security action.

Local people from the Penha area proceeded to place the discovered victims in an open area - and Itan's photos show the emotions of the gathered crowd.

"The brutality of it all shook me a lot: the sorrow of relatives, mothers fainting, pregnant wives, sobbing, angry family members," the photographer recalled.

The photographer

The official of the state stated that the massive police operation with approximately 2,500 law enforcement members was aimed at stopping a gang called Comando Vermelho from increasing their control.

At first, local officials maintained that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" lost their lives in the operation.

Officials subsequently stated that early calculations shows that 117 "suspects" lost their lives.

Rio's public defender's office, that gives legal support to the poor, has estimated the final tally of casualties at 132.

According to researchers, the gang is the only criminal group that recently has succeeded to make territorial gains in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

Experts commonly view among the biggest criminal organizations in Brazil, in company with another major gang, featuring a timeline extending half a century.

Per reporter an expert, who has been covering criminal activity in the city extensively, the gang "operates like a franchise" with area gang leaders affiliating with the group and acting as "commercial associates".

The gang concentrates largely on narcotics distribution, while also dealing in guns, precious metals, energy resources, alcohol and tobacco.

Per law enforcement statements, criminal affiliates possess significant weaponry and officials reported that while the action was underway, they encountered resistance via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The governor of the region, Cláudio Castro, characterized Red Command members as criminal extremists and called the four police officers who died during the operation as brave public servants.

But the number of fatalities in the security action has come in for criticism from international human rights authorities saying it was "appalled".

During a press briefing the next day, the state leader justified security actions.

"There was no objective to kill anyone. We aimed to arrest them all alive," he stated.

He further explained that the situation worsened as the individuals resisted aggressively: "It was a consequence of the resistance they carried out and the overwhelming response from the gang members."

The governor further reported that the bodies displayed by locals in the neighborhood had been "manipulated".

Through a message on social media, he asserted that particular individuals had been removed of military-style attire he said they had been wearing "to transfer accusation toward law enforcement".

Felipe Curi of Rio's civil police force additionally stated that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and arms" were taken away from the victims and presented video appearing to show a person removing tactical gear {off a corpse