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Bruno Itan

A photographer who observed the aftermath of a massive law enforcement action in Rio de Janeiro has recounted how residents returned with disfigured remains of those who had died.

The victims "kept coming: the count kept increasing", the eyewitness described. The total contained security forces.

One individual was discovered headless - additional victims were "totally disfigured", he reported. Several bodies showed evidence of knife injuries.

More than 120 people were fatally injured during the security action targeting an illegal organization - the most lethal operation Rio has experienced.

Bruno Itan reported that residents first notified him concerning the action early on Tuesday by local people from the Alemão area, who reached out informing him gunfire had erupted.

The eyewitness went to a local medical facility, where the casualties were coming in.

The photographer stated that law enforcement stopped members of the press from entering the affected area, where the police action were occurring.

"Law enforcement personnel established a perimeter and announced: 'Media representatives are not allowed to pass'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who grew up in that neighborhood, reported he succeeded to enter into the cordoned-off area, where he remained through the night.

He reported during the night, area inhabitants began to search the mountainous area that borders the community of Penha and the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for relatives who were unaccounted for since the police raid.

Residents living in Penha organized the located casualties in a square - the photographer's images display the response of the people there.

"The brutality of it all impacted me profoundly: the pain of the families, mothers fainting, women carrying children, crying, furious relatives," the reporter recounted.

The eyewitness

The state leader of Rio state announced that the large-scale security action involving around 2,500 security personnel was aimed at halting a gang referred to as Red Command from increasing their control.

Originally, the Rio state government claimed that "60 suspects along with four officers" lost their lives in the raid.

Authorities later reported that initial estimates suggests that 117 alleged criminals were fatally injured.

The public legal service, which provides legal assistance to the poor, has estimated the final tally of casualties at 132.

According to researchers, the gang represents the unique criminal entity that in the past few years has managed to make territorial gains in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs in Brazil, in company with First Capital Command, featuring a timeline extending half a century.

According to Brazilian journalist Rafael Soares, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio for years, the criminal organization "functions as a network" with area gang leaders joining the organization and acting as "operational allies".

The organization engages primarily in illegal drug trade, but also smuggles guns, gold, petroleum products, beverages cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates are well armed and police said that during the raid, they faced assaults using drone-delivered explosives.

The official of the state, Cláudio Castro, labeled gang affiliates as "narcoterrorists" and called the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as brave public servants.

However, the count of fatalities during the raid has received condemnation from international human rights authorities saying it was "horrified".

In a media appearance on Wednesday, the official supported law enforcement.

"It wasn't our intention to cause fatalities. We wanted to take suspects into custody without harm," he declared.

He continued that the situation worsened as the individuals resisted aggressively: "It was a consequence of the counterattack they implemented and the excessive violence by those criminals."

The governor further reported that the casualties shown by residents in Penha had been "tampered with".

Through a message on social media, he claimed that certain victims had been removed of tactical gear that he stated they possessed "to redirect responsibility toward law enforcement".

A law enforcement representative representing security forces further reported that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and weapons" were taken away from the casualties and presented video seemingly depicting an individual removing tactical gear {off a corpse