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The photographer

A photographer who observed the consequences of an extensive security raid in Rio de Janeiro has reported how residents returned with badly injured victims of those who had died.

The casualties "kept piling up: the count kept increasing", Bruno Itan reported. Among them were law enforcement personnel.

A particular victim was found without a head - while others appeared "completely mutilated", he reported. Numerous victims displayed evidence of knife injuries.

In excess of 120 victims lost their lives during Tuesday's raid targeting an illegal organization - the bloodiest action in the city.

Bruno Itan reported that he initially learned about the operation Tuesday morning by local people of the Alemão neighbourhood, who sent him messages telling him gunfire had erupted.

The reporter went to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the bodies were being brought.

The photographer stated that the police prevented journalists from accessing the Penha neighborhood, where the security measures were taking place.

"Security forces formed a line and announced: 'Journalists doesn't get past here'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in the community, explained he managed to make his way past the security perimeter, where he remained until dawn.

He reported that Tuesday night, local residents began to search the elevated terrain which divides the community of Penha and the neighboring Alemão community for loved ones who were unaccounted for after the operation.

Community members living in Penha arranged the discovered victims in a square - the photographer's images show the reaction of the people there.

"The brutality of the situation impacted me deeply: the pain of relatives, women collapsing, pregnant wives, crying, angry family members," the eyewitness remembered.

Bruno Itan

The governor of the state declared that the massive police operation with approximately 2,500 security personnel was aimed at stopping a criminal group referred to as the criminal faction from growing their influence.

Initially, local officials claimed that "60 suspects and four police officers" lost their lives in the operation.

They have since said that initial estimates indicates that 117 individuals have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that gives legal support to the poor, has estimated the total number of fatalities as 132.

According to researchers, Red Command stands as the sole illegal faction that in the past few years has managed to expand its territory in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs nationally, in company with a rival criminal group, and has a history dating back more than 50 years.

Based on reporter a specialist, who has long reported on criminal activity in the city over many years, the criminal organization "works as a system" with neighborhood bosses joining the organization and acting as "business partners".

The criminal group focuses mainly on illegal drug trade, but also smuggles guns, gold, fuel, alcohol smoking products.

According to the authorities, organization members are well armed and authorities stated that during the raid, they encountered resistance via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The official of the region, the government representative, labeled gang affiliates as drug terrorists and described the four police officers killed in the raid as brave public servants.

Nevertheless, the total of people killed in the operation has faced scrutiny with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "horrified".

In a media appearance the following day, Governor Castro justified security actions.

"It wasn't our intention to result in deaths. We aimed to take suspects into custody without harm," he said.

He continued that the events intensified because the suspects resisted aggressively: "It occurred of the retaliation they carried out and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The state leader also said that the bodies displayed by locals in the neighborhood had been "manipulated".

In a post through digital channels, he claimed that some of them had been taken of tactical gear he said they had been wearing "to transfer accusation toward law enforcement".

A law enforcement representative from the police department additionally stated that tactical gear, protective equipment, and weapons" were stripped from the bodies and presented video appearing to show an individual removing tactical gear {off a corpse