🔗 Share this article

The eyewitness

An eyewitness who documented the aftermath of a massive Brazilian police operation in the Brazilian city has described how local people brought back mutilated bodies of people who lost their lives.

The bodies "kept piling up: 25, 30, 35, 40, 45...", the eyewitness reported. They included security forces.

A particular victim had been decapitated - additional victims were "severely damaged", he reported. Many also had what he described as stab wounds.

In excess of 120 victims were fatally injured in the Tuesday operation on a criminal gang - the deadliest such raid Rio has experienced.

The photographer stated that he initially learned to the raid early on Tuesday by community members living in Alemão, who contacted him telling him an armed confrontation was occurring.

The reporter went to the healthcare center, where the bodies were coming in.

Itan explained that law enforcement prevented journalists from entering the operation zone, where the security measures was under way.

"Security forces established a perimeter and said: 'The press doesn't get past here'."

But Itan, who was raised in that neighborhood, reported he managed to enter past the security perimeter, where he stayed until dawn.

He reported that evening, area inhabitants began to search the mountainous area that separates Penha from the adjacent Alemão area for loved ones who had been missing following the security action.

Residents of the Penha neighbourhood proceeded to place the located casualties in a square - the photographer's images reveal the response of the people there.

"The harsh reality of it all shook me deeply: the grief of loved ones, parents losing consciousness, women carrying children, weeping, angry family members," the eyewitness remembered.

Bruno Itan

The state leader of Rio state stated that the large-scale security action deploying about 2,500 security personnel was intended to halting a gang referred to as Comando Vermelho from expanding its territory.

At first, local officials maintained that sixty alleged criminals plus four law enforcement personnel" had been killed in the raid.

They have since said that their "preliminary" count indicates that 117 "suspects" have been killed.

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

According to researchers, the criminal organization is the only criminal group that in the past few years has been able to make territorial gains throughout Rio state.

It is widely considered one of the two largest gangs in Brazil, together with a rival criminal group, and has a history extending half a century.

Per correspondent Rafael Soares, who has long reported on criminal activity in the city for years, the gang "works as a system" with neighborhood bosses forming part of the gang and acting as "commercial associates".

The criminal group concentrates largely on illegal drug trade, but also smuggles weapons, gold, petroleum products, beverages cigarettes.

According to the authorities, criminal affiliates are well armed and officials reported that throughout the operation, they faced assaults using drone-delivered explosives.

The state leader of Rio state, the government representative, characterized organization participants as criminal extremists and referred to the law enforcement personnel fatally injured in the action as "heroes".

However, the count of casualties in the security action has received condemnation from UN human rights officials saying it was "horrified".

In a media appearance on Wednesday, Governor Castro justified security actions.

"We did not plan to kill anyone. We intended to arrest them all alive," he stated.

He added that the circumstances had escalated as the individuals fought back: "It resulted of the retaliation they executed and the disproportionate use of force by the illegal group."

The official additionally stated that the casualties presented by community members in the neighborhood had been "manipulated".

Through a message on social media, he claimed that some of them had been removed of the camouflage clothing which he claimed they wore "in order to shift blame toward law enforcement".

Felipe Curi from the police department additionally stated that "camouflage clothing, protective equipment, and arms" were taken away from the casualties and displayed evidence appearing to show an individual cutting camouflage clothing {off a corpse