An autopsy has found that a nine-year-old Montreal girl allegedly killed by her father over the weekend was drowned.
The preliminary findings of the autopsy, which were released on Tuesday by New York State Police, found Melina Frattolin died by asphyxia due to drowning and her death was a homicide.
The results will have to be confirmed by further laboratory testing.
Melina’s body was found in the shallow water of a pond on Sunday in Ticonderoga, N.Y., about 50 kilometres east of Lake George, near the New York-Vermont border.
Her father, 45-year-old Montrealer Luciano Frattolin, was charged on Monday with second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse.
Police have also asked the public for help in the case. They released images of a grey 2024 Toyota Prius, the car in which the father and daughter travelled, and urged anyone who had seen it to contact the authorities by calling 518-873-2750 or emailing [email protected].
They said they were specifically looking for people who may have come across it driving in the areas of I-87 north between exits 28 and 20 on Saturday evening.
Frattolin had first reported his daughter’s disappearance to local police at around 10 p.m. on Saturday while they were travelling in the United States. An Amber Alert was triggered.
He told police that he’d left his car to urinate in a wooded area and that his daughter was gone when he returned. He reported a white van fleeing the scene southbound. In a subsequent interview, he mentioned two unknown men who forced Melina into the white van.
New York State Police confirmed Monday that the father had “fabricated the initial report of the abduction.”
Frattolin appeared at the Ticonderoga town court on Monday. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf at his arraignment, according to court officials.
Details of Frattolin’s financial situation began to surface on Monday.
Frattolin owes more than $150,000 to Scotiabank, according to two separate court cases. The bank alleges he entered into credit agreements between 2023 and 2024 related to his business, Gambella Coffee.
Frattolin is also seeking more than $115,000 in damages from business partners whom he says he entrusted to run an Airbnb on Bernard Street in Montreal in 2022, according to court documents.
Police have said the investigation has not yet uncovered a possible motive for the alleged murder.
‘We don’t know her, but we’re going to celebrate her life’
The community in Upstate New York will gather on Tuesday night to honour Melina’s life.
Bridgette Cruz, a Ticonderoga resident and the organizer of tonight’s vigil, says everyone in the small community is shaken.
“Not only in America, Canadians as well,” she said.
Cruz explained that she was holding the vigil to honour a young life lost, highlighting that everyone was grieving as parents, individuals and countries.
“These are your people. These might not be our people, but she is going to be one of us now since this is her eternal soul’s resting place,” she said.
The vigil will take place at Percy Thompson Centennial Park in Ticonderoga at 8 p.m. and will include a prayer ceremony, music, a candle lighting and a speech.
“We don’t know her, but we’re going to celebrate her life tonight,” said Cruz.
“I feel like we kind of need a little closure here in this town for her. And she needs it.”
