Luciano Frattolin Found Guilty in Murder of 9-Year-Old Daughter Melina

Luciano Frattolin has been found guilty in the murder of his 9-year-old daughter, Melina Frattolin.

News outlets reporting from Essex County Court in Elizabethtown say a jury found Frattolin guilty Monday of second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse. The jury reportedly deliberated for only about an hour before reaching its verdict.

The case dates back to July 2025, when Frattolin reported that Melina had been kidnapped during a trip with him in the Adirondacks. The report triggered a massive search and an Amber Alert.

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Investigators eventually determined that there was no kidnapping. Melina's body was discovered in a remote, swampy area near Ticonderoga.

Prosecutors argued during the trial that Frattolin drowned his daughter, concealed her body and then fabricated the kidnapping story to cover up the killing.

According to courtroom reports, prosecutors presented surveillance footage, cellphone and GPS evidence, police interviews and handwritten notes recovered from the rental vehicle Frattolin was using.

Prosecutors also argued that Frattolin killed Melina as an act of revenge against her mother, Kali Galanis, who had full custody of the child.

During closing arguments Monday, Essex County District Attorney Michael Langey reportedly told jurors, "Melina's short life came to a violent end."

Frattolin had considered testifying in his own defense but ultimately decided not to take the stand. According to the New York Post, he told the Judge that he wanted to testify but had been advised not to.

The jury ultimately returned guilty verdicts on both counts.

Frattolin now faces life in prison on the murder conviction. A sentencing date has not yet been announced.

The case drew national attention after what initially appeared to be a child-abduction emergency in the Adirondacks turned into a murder investigation.

Melina was nine years old when she was killed.