🔗 Share this article The casualties continued piling up - reporter shares deadly Rio law enforcement operation The photographer Dozens of bodies were laid out in an open area in northern Rio following the deadliest police raid Rio has ever seen A reporter who observed the aftermath of a massive security raid in Rio de Janeiro has described how residents came back with disfigured remains of those who had died. The casualties "kept coming: the count kept increasing", the photographer reported. They included security forces. One of the bodies was discovered headless - additional victims were "completely mutilated", he said. Many also had what appeared to be stab wounds. In excess of 120 victims lost their lives in the Tuesday operation on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid in the city. More than 100 people were taken into custody in connection with the operation Bruno Itan explained that residents first notified him to the raid Tuesday morning by local people of the Alemão neighbourhood, who reached out alerting him there was a shoot-out. The eyewitness went to the healthcare center, where the victims were being brought. The eyewitness reported that security forces prevented journalists from entering the Penha neighborhood, where the security measures were taking place. "Security forces formed a line and said: 'Journalists cannot proceed beyond this point'." Nevertheless, the eyewitness, who spent his childhood in the area, reported he succeeded to enter past the security perimeter, where he continued until dawn. He explained that Tuesday night, community members started looking the hillside that separates the community of Penha and the neighboring Alemão community for loved ones who were unaccounted for following the security action. Community members from the Penha area organized the discovered victims in a square - the photographer's images display the emotions of those present. "The violence of it all impacted me a lot: the pain of relatives, women collapsing, expectant spouses, sobbing, outraged parents," the photographer recalled. The eyewitness There was trauma in the neighborhood as locals found increasing numbers of casualties from the surrounding area The governor of Rio state stated that the extensive law enforcement effort deploying about 2,500 officers was intended to halting a criminal group referred to as Comando Vermelho from growing their influence. Initially, the Rio state government stated that "60 suspects along with four officers" lost their lives during the action. They have since said that initial estimates suggests that 117 individuals have been killed. Rio's public defender's office, which provides legal assistance to low-income residents, has calculated the overall count of fatalities at 132. Per investigative findings, Red Command is the only criminal group which in recent years has succeeded to increase its control throughout Rio state. Experts commonly view one of the two largest gangs nationally, together with another major gang, with a background spanning over five decades. According to correspondent a specialist, with extensive experience documenting illegal operations in Rio for years, the gang "operates like a franchise" with area gang leaders joining the organization and becoming "business partners". The organization concentrates largely on illegal drug trade, while also dealing in firearms, precious metals, fuel, alcohol cigarettes. According to the authorities, gang members possess significant weaponry and authorities stated that during the raid, they encountered resistance from explosive-laden drones. The governor of Rio state, the government representative, labeled Red Command members as drug terrorists and described the security forces killed in the raid as brave public servants. Nevertheless, the total of fatalities in the operation has received condemnation with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights saying it was "appalled". At a news conference on Wednesday, the official supported law enforcement. "It wasn't our intention to kill anyone. We aimed to take suspects into custody without harm," he said. He further explained that the circumstances intensified because the suspects resisted aggressively: "It was a consequence of the resistance they carried out and the disproportionate use of force from the gang members." The state leader further reported that the bodies shown by residents in Penha were "altered". Via a statement on online platforms, he asserted that particular individuals had been stripped of tactical gear that he stated they possessed "to transfer accusation onto the police". Felipe Curi representing security forces also said that military attire, body armor, and firearms" were stripped from the bodies and presented video appearing to show an individual stripping military attire {off a corpse