Tito Romalio

Tito Romalio was a Russian-Brazilian actor and choreographer who appeared in several Soviet films as a child, and later became a dancer. He was murdered by a supermarket security guard in May 2010. He was born Eufalio Tito Jose Romalio on July 19, 1951, in the Soviet Union. His father, Tito Romalio Sr., was a Brazilian actor who married a Russian actress and the family lived in Leningrad/St. Petersburg. Young Tito Romalio made his film debut at the age of five appearing as a child alongside his father in Priklyucheniya Artyomki (1956). At age ten he played one of the leads in Zdravstvuyte, deti (1962) by director Mark Donskoy. Upon recommendation from director Dnskoy, Tito Romalio studied acting and choreography at the reputable Leningrad Academic College of A. Vaganova, graduating in 1970. As a regular Soviet citizen, he served in the Soviet Red Army. After the army service, he returned to his career as professional actor and dancer. During the 70s he was an actor with the popular band "Druzhba" under the leadership of Aleksandr Bronevitskiy. He also played bit parts in film and on television. Tito Romalio was married to Russian actress Elena Uspenskaya and the couple organized a popular theatre for children named Globus. They produced several popular shows for children. In the early morning of May 10, 2010, Tito Romalio was shopping at a major supermarket, Perekrestok, in Saint Petersburg. There he was severely beaten by a former security guard of the same supermarket who happened to be recently fired from the job. The security guard, Khamzai Yenikeyev, a troubled veteran of the Russian-Chechen war who was diagnosed with a post-traumatic stress disorder and was fired from the job a few days ago, was wandering near the supermarket. He approached the actor and demanded a cell phone, but the actor refused to give his cell phone away. In an outburst of anger Khamzai Yenikeyev attacked Tito Romalio and hit the actor in the head several times. Tito Romalio fell on the ground unconscious. Khamzai Yenikeyev continued the beating using his feet. The beating was videotaped on a security camera. As a result of the beating, Tito Romalio suffered multiple head injuries and had a severe blood loss. He remained unconscious and was bleeding until he was taken to the State emergency room at the Aleksandrovsky Hospital of Saint Petersburg. Tito Romalio remained unconscious until he died on May 11, 2010. His death caused a considerable mourning among his fans in Saint Petersburg and across Russia. He was laid to rest in Severnoe cemetery in St. Petersburg, Russia.