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Bruno Itan

An eyewitness who observed the consequences of a large-scale law enforcement action in the Brazilian city has reported how community members returned with disfigured remains of the deceased individuals.

The bodies "continued arriving: the count kept increasing", the photographer stated. The total contained those of police officers.

One of the bodies was found without a head - while others appeared "totally disfigured", he said. Numerous victims displayed what appeared to be stab wounds.

More than 120 people lost their lives during Tuesday's raid on a criminal gang - the most lethal operation the municipality has seen.

The eyewitness reported that residents first notified him about the operation Tuesday morning by local people living in Alemão, who contacted him telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The eyewitness made his way to a local medical facility, where the bodies were being brought.

The eyewitness reported that the police prevented journalists from going into the operation zone, where the police action were occurring.

"Law enforcement personnel formed a line and declared: 'The press doesn't get past here'."

However, the photographer, who grew up in the community, stated he was able to enter past the security perimeter, where he stayed until the next morning.

He described that Tuesday night, local residents began to search the hillside which divides Penha from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for family members whose whereabouts were unknown following the security action.

Local people living in Penha organized the recovered bodies in a square - the documented evidence display the reaction of the gathered crowd.

"The harsh reality of the situation shook me a lot: the pain of the families, parents losing consciousness, women carrying children, crying, furious relatives," the reporter recounted.

Bruno Itan

The official of the region declared that the massive police operation deploying about 2,500 security personnel was aimed at preventing a criminal group known as Comando Vermelho from expanding its territory.

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

Authorities later reported that initial estimates shows that 117 individuals lost their lives.

The public legal service, that gives legal support to the poor, has estimated the total number of casualties at 132.

Per investigative findings, the gang is the only criminal group that in the past few years has succeeded to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered as a major illegal faction nationally, in company with a rival criminal group, featuring a timeline spanning over five decades.

Based on reporter an expert, who has been covering illegal operations in Rio over many years, the gang "works as a system" with local criminal leaders joining the organization and acting as "business partners".

The organization focuses mainly on drug trafficking, while also dealing in guns, gold, fuel, beverages cigarettes.

Based on official reports, gang members possess significant weaponry and police said that during the raid, they faced assaults from explosive-laden drones.

The governor of the region, the political leader, characterized organization participants as criminal extremists and referred to the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as brave public servants.

However, the count of casualties in the operation has come in for criticism from UN human rights officials stating they were "horrified".

At a news conference the next day, the official justified security actions.

"It wasn't our intention to cause fatalities. We intended to detain everyone safely," he stated.

He added that the situation worsened due to the alleged criminals fought back: "It occurred of the retaliation they carried out and the excessive violence from the gang members."

The governor also said that the casualties shown by residents in the neighborhood had been "manipulated".

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

Felipe Curi from the police department further reported that "camouflage clothing, vests, and firearms" were taken away from the casualties and presented video appearing to show a person removing tactical gear {off a corpse