Father accused of killing 9-year-old remains stone-cold as court shows kidnapping video
Luciano Frattolin sat expressionless in an Elizabethtown courtroom while prosecutors played video of his repeated false kidnapping story about his daughter Melina, whose body was found dead in the Adirondacks.
In a courtroom in Elizabethtown, New York, Luciano Frattolin, 45, appeared detached while state police played video excerpts of his persistent kidnapping narrative concerning his nine-year-old daughter, Melina. Investigators had previously shown him photographs of Melina’s body, discovered in mud along Paragon Brook, a location eight miles from Interstate 87 in Ticonderoga. Cell-phone location data and a tracked Apple AirTag led authorities to the site, contradicting Frattolin’s claim that he and his daughter had been near a lake with numerous houses.
He also altered his story about changing clothes after being identified on surveillance outside a McDonald’s. State police investigator Ashlee Marks confronted him with the inconsistencies, noting his shifting details. The murder case, stemming from the July 19, 2025 incident, remains pending with the next hearing scheduled for Thursday.
Why it matters
The case highlights how forensic evidence can dismantle fabricated defenses in serious homicide trials.
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