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The photographer

An eyewitness who witnessed the results of a large-scale Brazilian police operation in the Brazilian city has described how local people brought back badly injured victims of the deceased individuals.

The bodies "continued arriving: the numbers kept rising", the eyewitness stated. Among them were security forces.

A particular victim had been decapitated - while others appeared "severely damaged", he explained. Numerous victims displayed evidence of stab wounds.

Over 120 individuals were killed during the security action targeting an illegal organization - the bloodiest action the municipality has seen.

The photographer reported that residents first notified him about the operation early on Tuesday by community members living in Alemão, who reached out informing him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The reporter made his way to a local medical facility, where the casualties were arriving.

The eyewitness reported that the police stopped members of the press from going into the Penha neighborhood, where the security measures was under way.

"Law enforcement personnel established a perimeter and announced: 'The press cannot proceed beyond this point'."

Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in that neighborhood, reported he was able to gain access past the security perimeter, where he stayed through the night.

He explained that Tuesday night, community members commenced searching the elevated terrain that separates the community of Penha and the adjacent Alemão area for loved ones who were unaccounted for following the security action.

Residents from the Penha area organized the discovered victims in an open area - the photographer's images reveal the reaction of the gathered crowd.

"The violence of the situation affected me deeply: the pain of loved ones, parents losing consciousness, pregnant wives, weeping, furious relatives," the eyewitness remembered.

The photographer

The state leader of the region declared that the massive police operation deploying about 2,500 officers was aimed at stopping a gang referred to as Red Command from expanding its territory.

At first, state authorities stated that sixty individuals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the operation.

Officials subsequently stated that early calculations indicates that 117 "suspects" were fatally injured.

The legal assistance organization, that offers legal help to low-income residents, has estimated the total number of fatalities as 132.

Per investigative findings, the gang represents the unique criminal entity that in the past few years has succeeded to increase its control across the region.

It is generally regarded one of the two largest gangs in the country, alongside another major gang, with a background spanning over five decades.

According to Brazilian journalist Rafael Soares, who has long reported on crime in Rio for years, the criminal organization "functions as a network" with area gang leaders affiliating with the group and serving as "commercial associates".

The organization engages primarily in narcotics distribution, but also smuggles weapons, valuable minerals, petroleum products, alcohol and tobacco.

According to the authorities, gang members possess significant weaponry and officials reported that during the raid, they faced assaults using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of the region, Cláudio Castro, characterized gang affiliates as "narcoterrorists" and called the law enforcement personnel who died during the operation as "heroes".

However, the count of fatalities in the operation has faced scrutiny from international human rights authorities expressing they felt "appalled".

At a news conference the next day, Governor Castro defended the police force.

"We did not plan to cause fatalities. We intended to arrest them all alive," he declared.

He further explained that the situation intensified as the individuals fought back: "It was a consequence of the resistance they carried out and the excessive violence by the illegal group."

The official also said that the casualties presented by community members in Penha had been "tampered with".

Via a statement through digital channels, he asserted that certain victims had been removed of military-style attire which he claimed they wore "to redirect responsibility toward law enforcement".

A law enforcement representative from the police department further reported that "camouflage clothing, body armor, and arms" were stripped from the casualties and showed footage seemingly depicting a person stripping military attire {off a corpse