Romania’s National Council for the Study of the Security Archives (CNSAS) has released a document detailing a significant error in January 1989. The youth newspaper *Scânteia Tineretului* mistakenly published a photograph of Nicolae Ceaușescu framed in black, giving the impression he had died. This typographical error triggered immediate alarm within the Securitate, Romania’s secret police. Authorities halted the printing process in the middle of the night to prevent widespread dissemination of the image. The document reveals the Securitate’s swift response to contain what they perceived as a potentially destabilizing situation. The incident occurred just months before the Romanian Revolution which led to Ceaușescu’s overthrow and execution. The released document provides a glimpse into the anxieties of the regime in its final months.