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The photographer

A reporter who witnessed the aftermath of a massive Brazilian police operation in the Brazilian city has reported how residents came back with badly injured victims of people who lost their lives.

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

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

In excess of 120 victims were fatally injured in the Tuesday operation against a criminal group - the deadliest such raid Rio has experienced.

The eyewitness explained that he initially learned about the operation early on Tuesday by community members from the Alemão area, who reached out alerting him gunfire had erupted.

The photographer made his way to the healthcare center, where the casualties were coming in.

The photographer stated that security forces blocked media personnel from accessing the Penha neighborhood, where the operation was under way.

"Police officers established a perimeter and said: 'Media representatives are not allowed to pass'."

But Itan, who was raised in the community, reported he succeeded to gain access past the security perimeter, where he stayed until dawn.

He described during the night, area inhabitants started looking the elevated terrain which divides the community of Penha and the neighboring Alemão community for loved ones who were unaccounted for since the police raid.

Residents from the Penha area organized the recovered bodies in an open area - the documented evidence display the response of the people there.

"The harsh reality of the situation shook me a lot: the grief of the families, mothers fainting, pregnant wives, crying, outraged parents," the eyewitness remembered.

The eyewitness

The state leader of the state stated that the massive police operation with approximately 2,500 law enforcement members was aimed at halting a criminal group referred to as Comando Vermelho from increasing their control.

Initially, local officials maintained that sixty alleged criminals and four police officers" were fatally injured during the action.

Officials subsequently stated that initial estimates suggests that 117 alleged criminals were fatally injured.

The legal assistance organization, that gives legal support to low-income residents, has put the overall count of casualties to be 132.

Based on expert analysis, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction that recently has succeeded to increase its control across the region.

Experts commonly view as a major illegal faction nationally, alongside a rival criminal group, with a background dating back more than 50 years.

According to reporter Rafael Soares, who has been covering illegal operations in Rio for years, Red Command "works as a system" with neighborhood bosses joining the organization and acting as "operational allies".

The criminal group engages primarily in illegal drug trade, but also smuggles guns, gold, energy resources, beverages smoking products.

Per law enforcement statements, organization members possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that during the raid, they encountered resistance from explosive-laden drones.

The state leader of the region, Cláudio Castro, characterized gang affiliates as criminal extremists and referred to the four police officers killed in the raid as courageous individuals.

However, the count of fatalities in the operation has received condemnation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "appalled".

In a media appearance the next day, Governor Castro defended the police force.

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

He further explained that the situation worsened as the individuals fought back: "It was a consequence of the resistance they implemented and the excessive violence by those criminals."

The state leader also said that the bodies displayed by locals in the area had been "tampered with".

In a post on social media, he claimed that particular individuals had been taken of tactical gear that he stated they possessed "to transfer accusation onto the police".

Felipe Curi from the police department also said that "camouflage clothing, vests, and firearms" were stripped from the victims and presented video seemingly depicting a man removing tactical gear {off a corpse