A man who claimed to be the last living relative of Nazi tyrant Adolf Hitler has died aged 72. Romano Lukas Hitler maintained that he was the dictator’s great nephew throughout his life, as well as the last family member to bear his surname. The 72-year-old claimed he had inherited it through the Nazi leader’s half-brother, Alois, whose younger brother’s grandson was Romano’s father. Although his official documents bore the Hitler surname, the authenticity of his ancestry remained in doubt right up to the end.
The man who could have been the end of the Hitler bloodline had disappeared from public life in recent years, with German news outlet BILD only uncovering this month that he had died on June 22, 2022. Romano reportedly spent his final days living on benefits in the German city of Gorlitz, which has a population of around 50,000 people, and never married or had children.
Alongside staying out of the public eye, Romano appeared to have been a recluse within the East German community, with his neighbours admitting to knowing little about him when questioned by BILD reporters.
One revealed that his apartment had been plastered with photos of Adolf Hitler alongside Angela Merkel, Osama Bin Laden and Muhammend Ali, however – adding that it had been stripped of the strange decor when a new tenant moved in.
Local authorities reportedly confirmed the death but didn’t reveal what had caused it, although a neighbour suggested he had died after catching coronavirus.
Before dropping off the radar, the 72-year-old claimed that his parents fled East Germany to settle in Slovakia, where he was sent to a monastery before being adopted by a Polish family. Despite describing his surname as « a cross to bear », he disclosed in interviews that he had his supposed great-uncle’s artwork hung up in his home.
Romano also made headlines when he was convicted of paedophiliia in 2019 after kissing a 13-year-old girl, whom he attacked while visiting her home to view a garage that had been put up for sale, according to her father.
« He lured her to his flat with sweets, brought her clothes and plastic flowers and even offered to marry her, » he told a German court.
Romano pleaded innocence and claimed the kiss had been a German greeting, but a judge ruled that he had kissed her against her will on both the cheek and neck.
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