The bodies just kept coming - eyewitness describes fatal Rio security action

Bruno Itan

A reporter who witnessed the results of a massive security raid in the Brazilian city has described how local people brought back mutilated bodies of those who had died.

The bodies "kept coming: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the photographer reported. Among them were those of police officers.

One of the bodies had been decapitated - while others appeared "completely mutilated", he said. Many also had what appeared to be knife injuries.

Over 120 individuals were killed in the Tuesday operation targeting an illegal organization - the bloodiest action in the city.

Bruno Itan reported that he was first alerted about the operation in the early hours by local people living in Alemão, who contacted him telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer traveled to the healthcare center, where the victims were coming in.

The eyewitness reported that law enforcement stopped members of the press from entering the operation zone, where the security measures were occurring.

"Police officers established a perimeter and announced: 'Journalists cannot proceed beyond this point'."

But Itan, who grew up in the community, stated he succeeded to make his way past the security perimeter, where he continued until dawn.

He described during the night, local residents began to search the mountainous area that separates the Penha neighborhood from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for loved ones who had been missing since the police raid.

Community members of the Penha neighbourhood organized the located casualties in an open area - the photographer's images reveal the reaction of the people there.

"The violence of what occurred shook me a lot: the pain of relatives, parents losing consciousness, pregnant wives, crying, furious relatives," the reporter recounted.

The photographer

The governor of Rio state stated that the massive police operation deploying about 2,500 security personnel was designed to stopping an illegal organization known as Red Command from increasing their control.

Originally, state authorities claimed that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the operation.

Authorities later reported that early calculations suggests that 117 individuals have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that offers legal help to the poor, has calculated the overall count of people killed at 132.

According to researchers, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction which in recent years has succeeded to increase its control in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

Experts commonly view among the biggest criminal organizations in the country, in company with a rival criminal group, featuring a timeline dating back more than 50 years.

Per correspondent an expert, who has been covering criminal activity in the city extensively, Red Command "operates like a franchise" with neighborhood bosses affiliating with the group and serving as "commercial associates".

The criminal group concentrates largely on drug trafficking, while also dealing in weapons, valuable minerals, fuel, alcohol cigarettes.

Per law enforcement statements, criminal affiliates possess significant weaponry and police said that while the action was underway, they came under attack via weaponized unmanned aircraft.

The governor of the region, the government representative, labeled gang affiliates as criminal extremists and called the law enforcement personnel who died during the operation as "heroes".

However, the count of people killed during the raid has received condemnation from UN human rights officials saying it was "shocked".

At a news conference the next day, Governor Castro supported law enforcement.

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

He further explained that the events intensified due to the alleged criminals fought back: "It occurred of the counterattack they executed and the overwhelming response by those criminals."

The state leader also said that the victims presented by community members in the neighborhood were "altered".

In a post on social media, he said that particular individuals had been removed of tactical gear which he claimed they wore "in order to shift blame onto the police".

A law enforcement representative from the police department further reported that military attire, vests, and weapons" had been removed from the victims and displayed evidence seemingly depicting a person stripping military attire {off a corpse