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Bruno Itan

An eyewitness who observed the consequences of a large-scale security raid in the metropolitan area has recounted how community members returned with mutilated bodies of the deceased individuals.

The victims "kept piling up: the numbers kept rising", the photographer described. The total contained those of police officers.

One individual was discovered headless - others were "completely mutilated", he said. Numerous victims displayed what appeared to be knife injuries.

In excess of 120 victims lost their lives during Tuesday's raid on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid the municipality has seen.

The photographer reported that residents first notified him to the raid in the early hours by residents from the Alemão area, who reached out telling him gunfire had erupted.

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

Itan explained that the police prevented journalists from accessing the operation zone, where the operation was under way.

"Security forces formed a line and announced: 'Journalists doesn't get past here'."

But Itan, who grew up in that neighborhood, stated he managed to gain access into the cordoned-off area, where he stayed through the night.

He described that evening, community members commenced searching the mountainous area that borders Penha from the neighboring Alemão community for relatives who had been missing following the security action.

Community members from the Penha area arranged the recovered bodies in a square - the documented evidence reveal the reaction of those present.

"The harsh reality of the situation impacted me a lot: the grief of relatives, mothers fainting, women carrying children, weeping, furious relatives," the eyewitness remembered.

The eyewitness

The state leader of the region declared that the large-scale security action deploying about 2,500 officers was intended to preventing a gang referred to as the criminal faction from growing their influence.

Originally, local officials maintained that "60 suspects along with four officers" had been killed in the operation.

They have since said that initial estimates suggests that 117 alleged criminals lost their lives.

Rio's public defender's office, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has calculated the final tally of fatalities as 132.

Per investigative findings, the criminal organization stands as the sole illegal faction 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, together with a rival criminal group, with a background dating back more than 50 years.

Based on correspondent Rafael Soares, who has been covering criminal activity in the city over many years, the gang "functions as a network" with area gang leaders affiliating with the group and becoming "commercial associates".

The criminal group engages primarily in drug trafficking, while also dealing in weapons, valuable minerals, energy resources, beverages smoking products.

According to the authorities, gang members have substantial firearms and officials reported that during the raid, they faced assaults from explosive-laden drones.

The governor of Rio state, Cláudio Castro, characterized organization participants as "narcoterrorists" and described the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as brave public servants.

Nevertheless, the total of casualties during the raid has faced scrutiny from UN human rights officials expressing they felt "appalled".

In a media appearance the next day, the official supported law enforcement.

"There was no objective to kill anyone. We aimed to take suspects into custody without harm," he stated.

He added that the circumstances worsened as the individuals resisted aggressively: "It occurred of the retaliation they carried out and the excessive violence by those criminals."

The state leader additionally stated that the bodies displayed by locals in the neighborhood had been "tampered with".

Via a statement on social media, he claimed that particular individuals had been stripped of military-style attire which he claimed they wore "in order to shift blame to security forces".

A police official from the police department additionally stated that tactical gear, body armor, and weapons" were stripped from the bodies and presented video apparently demonstrating a man cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse