Prosecution lays out case against Montreal man charged with murdering his daughter

This story was reported by Lohr McKinstry and originally published in Plattsburgh N.Y.’s Press-Republican.

ELIZABETHTOWN, N.Y. — The first day of the Luciano Frattolin murder trial opened Thursday with attorneys offering totally opposite versions of how the Canadian man’s 9-year-old daughter lost her life.

Frattolin, 45, of Montreal, is charged with drowning his daughter, Melina, in a shallow pond in the town of Ticonderoga, N.Y.

He has pleaded not guilty to felony charges of second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse.

After three days of jury selection, the trial began with opening statements by the prosecution and defence.

Prosecution

Essex County assistant district attorney Carrie Daly said the capital murder case began “when the body of a little girl was located by law enforcement” off the Short Swing Trail in the Pharaoh Lakes Wilderness Area between Ticonderoga and Schroon Lake.

“That girl was Melina Frattolin,” Daly told jurors. “The People intend to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that this defendant drowned her. After the murder, the defendant concealed her body by placing a large rock on it.”

Daly said Frattolin had a 10-year relationship with the girl’s mother, Kali Galanis, that ended in 2019. Galanis had full custody of Melina and had allowed Frattolin to take her on a vacation in the United States in July 2025.

“He (Frattolin) placed a 911 call from Lake George and reported his daughter was kidnapped,” Daly said.

Frattolin told police he turned around on I-87 and went southbound to find a rest stop for his daughter. The two had been due back at Melina’s mother’s home at 8:30 p.m. on July 19, 2025.

“Every time information was located from multiple sources, the defendant changed his story,” Daly said.

She said video from the Saratoga Springs McDonald’s, where Frattolin and Melina stopped, showed he was wearing different clothes when they were there, Daly said.

Frattolin’s wet clothes and shoes were later found in a garbage bag in the woods off I-87, she said.

Defence

Frattolin’s defence is being handled by Warren County assigned counsel administrator Brian Pilatzke along with the Essex County Public Defender’s Office.

“This is a tragedy,” Pilatzke said in his opening statement to the jury. “A young child is gone. Your duty is to decide whether Mr. Frattolin is guilty.

“This case is based entirely on circumstantial evidence. Melina was kidnapped. When he called 911, the operator couldn’t understand his English.”

Frattolin lived in Canada but is a dual citizen of Ethiopia and Italy. He carried an Italian passport.

“Luciano fully co-operated with law enforcement,” Pilatzke said. “Luciano begged them to find his daughter. ”

He said if the prosecution fails to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt, Frattolin must be acquitted.

Witnesses

The first witness to be called by the prosecution was Warren County communications officer Ryan Grierson, the dispatcher on duty when Frattolin called 911.

He said cellphone data from Frattolin’s phone displayed at the 911 centre showed he was in front of the Warren County Government Building when he made the call.

“During that phone call, you noticed that Mr. Frattolin was having a language barrier?” Pilatzke asked.

“Correct,” Grierson answered.

Warren County Sheriff’s Department patrol officer Trevor Hopeck took the stand next to testify he met Frattolin on Route 9 near the municipal complex and got information from him.

“The first words he said to me was, ‘She’s gone,’” Hopeck said. “They stopped for a bathroom break, and she was taken.”

Audio from the 911 call and video from Hopeck’s Axon bodycam were both played for the jury.

The trial will resume Friday at 9 a.m. in the Essex County Courthouse.

Hamilton County Judge Tatiana Coffinger, specially presiding, is hearing the case.