The victims kept arriving - reporter shares deadly Rio police raid

The photographer

An eyewitness who witnessed the consequences of an extensive law enforcement action in the metropolitan area has described how local people came back with disfigured remains of those who had died.

The bodies "kept piling up: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the eyewitness described. They included those of police officers.

A particular victim was discovered headless - others were "severely damaged", he said. Many also had what he described as knife injuries.

In excess of 120 victims were killed during Tuesday's raid targeting an illegal organization - the bloodiest action the municipality has seen.

Bruno Itan explained that he initially learned concerning the action Tuesday morning by residents from the Alemão area, who sent him messages telling him gunfire had erupted.

The photographer made his way to the healthcare center, where the bodies were being brought.

The eyewitness reported that the police stopped members of the press from entering the operation zone, where the operation were occurring.

"Law enforcement personnel established a perimeter and announced: 'Media representatives are not allowed to pass'."

However, the photographer, who was raised in that neighborhood, reported he managed to gain access into the restricted zone, where he continued through the night.

He explained that Tuesday night, local residents began to search the elevated terrain that separates the community of Penha and the adjacent Alemão area for relatives who had been missing after the operation.

Residents from the Penha area organized the discovered victims in a public space - the documented evidence reveal the reaction of the people there.

"The violence of the situation shook me a lot: the sorrow of relatives, parents losing consciousness, pregnant wives, crying, outraged parents," the photographer recalled.

The eyewitness

The governor of Rio state announced that the extensive law enforcement effort involving around 2,500 officers was designed to stopping a criminal group referred to as Red Command from growing their influence.

Originally, state authorities claimed that sixty alleged criminals plus four law enforcement personnel" were fatally injured in the raid.

They have since said that initial estimates shows that 117 individuals have been killed.

Rio's public defender's office, that offers legal help to disadvantaged individuals, has calculated the final tally of fatalities to be 132.

According to researchers, the criminal organization stands as the sole illegal faction which in recent years has succeeded to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered among the biggest criminal organizations in Brazil, in company with a rival criminal group, and has a history dating back more than 50 years.

Based on reporter an expert, with extensive experience documenting crime in Rio for years, the gang "works as a system" with neighborhood bosses affiliating with the group and serving as "operational allies".

The gang focuses mainly on drug trafficking, additionally trafficking firearms, precious metals, fuel, liquor cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that during the raid, they came under attack using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of the region, Cláudio Castro, described organization participants as "narcoterrorists" and referred to the security forces killed in the raid as brave public servants.

Nevertheless, the total of people killed in the security action has received condemnation from international human rights authorities expressing they felt "shocked".

During a press briefing on Wednesday, the official supported law enforcement.

"We did not plan to result in deaths. We aimed to arrest them all alive," he stated.

He added that the circumstances worsened due to the alleged criminals had retaliated: "It resulted of the counterattack they implemented and the disproportionate use of force by the illegal group."

The official further reported that the bodies presented by community members in the area had been "manipulated".

Through a message on social media, he claimed that particular individuals had been stripped of military-style attire that he stated they possessed "to transfer accusation onto the police".

A police official from the police department further reported that military attire, vests, and weapons" were taken away from the bodies and showed footage seemingly depicting a person stripping military attire {off a corpse