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The photographer

A reporter who documented the aftermath of a large-scale security raid in the Brazilian city has described how community members returned with mutilated bodies of people who lost their lives.

The victims "continued arriving: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the photographer described. Among them were those of police officers.

One individual was found without a head - additional victims were "totally disfigured", he explained. Many also had what he described as knife injuries.

Over 120 individuals were killed during the security action on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid in the city.

Bruno Itan reported that he was first alerted to the raid Tuesday morning by residents from the Alemão area, who sent him messages telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The eyewitness went to the Getúlio Vargas hospital, where the victims were coming in.

The photographer stated that the police prevented journalists from going into the affected area, where the security measures was under way.

"Law enforcement personnel created a barrier and announced: 'Journalists cannot proceed beyond this point'."

However, the photographer, who spent his childhood in that neighborhood, stated he was able to make his way past the security perimeter, where he remained until the next morning.

He reported during the night, local residents started looking the elevated terrain which divides the Penha neighborhood from the neighboring Alemão community for loved ones who were unaccounted for following the security action.

Local people living in Penha organized the discovered victims in a square - the documented evidence show the response of those present.

"The violence of what occurred affected me deeply: the grief of loved ones, women collapsing, expectant spouses, sobbing, angry family members," the eyewitness remembered.

Bruno Itan

The official of the region announced that the extensive law enforcement effort with approximately 2,500 security personnel was intended to halting a criminal group called Red Command from growing their influence.

Originally, state authorities stated that "60 suspects along with four officers" were fatally injured during the action.

Authorities later reported that their "preliminary" count shows that 117 "suspects" were fatally injured.

Rio's public defender's office, that gives legal support to the poor, has put the final tally of casualties as 132.

Per investigative findings, the gang represents the unique criminal entity that recently has been able to increase its control across the region.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs in the country, in company with First Capital Command, and has a history dating back more than 50 years.

Per reporter Rafael Soares, who has been covering crime in Rio over many years, the criminal organization "works as a system" with local criminal leaders forming part of the gang and acting as "operational allies".

The organization concentrates largely on drug trafficking, additionally trafficking weapons, gold, energy resources, beverages smoking products.

Per law enforcement statements, gang members are well armed and police said that during the raid, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The governor of Rio state, the political leader, labeled Red Command members as "narcoterrorists" and described the law enforcement personnel killed in the raid as "heroes".

But the number of casualties in the security action has come in for criticism with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights stating they were "horrified".

At a news conference the following day, the state leader justified security actions.

"It wasn't our intention to result in deaths. We wanted to take suspects into custody without harm," he declared.

He added that the situation had escalated due to the alleged criminals had retaliated: "It occurred of the retaliation they implemented and the overwhelming response 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 redirect responsibility to security forces".

A police official from the police department also said that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and weapons" were stripped from the casualties and showed footage appearing to show a man cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse