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Bruno Itan

A photographer who observed the results of a massive security raid in the Brazilian city has recounted how local people brought back disfigured remains of people who lost their lives.

The bodies "kept piling up: the numbers kept rising", Bruno Itan described. The total contained security forces.

One of the bodies had been decapitated - while others appeared "completely mutilated", he explained. Numerous victims displayed evidence of blade trauma.

More than 120 people were fatally injured during Tuesday's raid against a criminal group - the deadliest such raid Rio has experienced.

The eyewitness stated that residents first notified him about the operation in the early hours by local people living in Alemão, who sent him messages informing him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The photographer went to the healthcare center, where the casualties were being brought.

The eyewitness reported that security forces blocked media personnel from entering the operation zone, where the security measures were taking place.

"Police officers formed a line and announced: 'Media representatives doesn't get past here'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who was raised in the area, explained he managed to enter past the security perimeter, where he remained until dawn.

He explained during the night, community members commenced searching the elevated terrain which divides the Penha neighborhood from the nearby Alemão neighbourhood for loved ones whose whereabouts were unknown after the operation.

Residents of the Penha neighbourhood arranged the located casualties in a public space - and Itan's photos display the reaction of the people there.

"The harsh reality of what occurred affected me deeply: the grief of relatives, women collapsing, women carrying children, sobbing, outraged parents," the eyewitness remembered.

The eyewitness

The governor of Rio state stated that the large-scale security action involving around 2,500 law enforcement members was aimed at halting a gang referred to as the criminal faction from expanding its territory.

Initially, the Rio state government stated that sixty alleged criminals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the operation.

They have since said that initial estimates suggests that 117 alleged criminals have been killed.

The legal assistance organization, that gives legal support to disadvantaged individuals, has calculated the total number of people killed as 132.

Based on expert analysis, the gang stands as the sole illegal faction which in recent years has succeeded to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered as a major illegal faction in the country, together with First Capital Command, featuring a timeline spanning over five decades.

Based on Brazilian journalist an expert, who has been covering illegal operations in Rio over many years, the criminal organization "operates like a franchise" with neighborhood bosses forming part of the gang and becoming "operational allies".

The gang focuses mainly on drug trafficking, additionally trafficking weapons, gold, petroleum products, alcohol smoking products.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members have substantial firearms and officials reported that while the action was underway, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of the state, the political leader, characterized organization participants as "narcoterrorists" and referred to the four police officers fatally injured in the action as "heroes".

But the number of fatalities in the operation has faced scrutiny with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "shocked".

In a media appearance the following day, the state leader justified security actions.

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

He added that the circumstances worsened due to the alleged criminals fought back: "It was a consequence of the retaliation they carried out and the excessive violence by the illegal group."

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

Through a message on online platforms, he claimed that certain victims had been stripped of military-style attire that he stated they possessed "to redirect responsibility toward law enforcement".

A law enforcement representative from the police department also said that "camouflage clothing, protective equipment, and weapons" had been removed from the casualties and showed footage apparently demonstrating a man removing tactical gear {off a corpse