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Bruno Itan

An eyewitness who documented the consequences of a large-scale security raid in Rio de Janeiro has recounted how residents brought back badly injured victims of those who had died.

The bodies "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", Bruno Itan stated. They included security forces.

A particular victim was found without a head - others were "totally disfigured", he said. Several bodies showed evidence of stab wounds.

Over 120 individuals lost their lives during Tuesday's raid against a criminal group - the bloodiest action the municipality has seen.

Bruno Itan stated that he was first alerted to the raid in the early hours by local people of the Alemão neighbourhood, who sent him messages telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer traveled to a local medical facility, where the bodies were being brought.

The photographer stated that the police stopped members of the press from going into the operation zone, where the security measures were occurring.

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

But Itan, who was raised in that neighborhood, reported he was able to gain access into the cordoned-off area, where he continued through the night.

He reported that Tuesday night, area inhabitants commenced searching the elevated terrain which divides the community of Penha and the adjacent Alemão area for relatives who were unaccounted for after the operation.

Residents living in Penha arranged the located casualties in a square - the documented evidence reveal the reaction of the gathered crowd.

"The harsh reality of what occurred shook me deeply: the grief of loved ones, parents losing consciousness, expectant spouses, sobbing, furious relatives," the reporter recounted.

The photographer

The state leader of the state announced that the large-scale security action with approximately 2,500 officers was designed to halting a gang referred to as Comando Vermelho from expanding its territory.

At first, the Rio state government claimed that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the operation.

Officials subsequently stated that their "preliminary" count suggests that 117 individuals lost their lives.

The legal assistance organization, that offers legal help to the poor, has put the overall count of fatalities as 132.

According to researchers, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction which in recent years has been able to expand its territory across the region.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs in Brazil, alongside First Capital Command, and has a history extending half a century.

According to correspondent a specialist, with extensive experience documenting criminal activity in the city over many years, Red Command "works as a system" with area gang leaders joining the organization and acting as "commercial associates".

The gang focuses mainly on narcotics distribution, additionally trafficking weapons, precious metals, petroleum products, beverages and tobacco.

Based on official reports, criminal affiliates possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that during the raid, they faced assaults via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The official of the region, Cláudio Castro, described organization participants as criminal extremists and referred to the security forces fatally injured in the action as courageous individuals.

Nevertheless, the total of people killed in the operation has faced scrutiny from international human rights authorities expressing they felt "appalled".

In a media appearance the following day, the official defended the police force.

"There was no objective to result in deaths. We intended to take suspects into custody without harm," he said.

He further explained that the events worsened because the suspects resisted aggressively: "It resulted of the retaliation they executed and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The official further reported that the casualties shown by residents in the area were "altered".

In a post through digital channels, he asserted that particular individuals had been stripped of tactical gear he said they had been wearing "to transfer accusation onto the police".

A police official from the police department further reported that "camouflage clothing, protective equipment, and arms" were taken away from the bodies and displayed evidence appearing to show a man cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse