The cause of the death of 9 -year -old Greek -Canadian Melina – Galanis Fratolin was revealed by her 9 -year -old Greek father in the US while vacationing at the New York.
9-year-old Melina Galani-Fatolin lost her life from drowningaccording to the preliminary results of the necropsy carried out in the girl’s body.
The body of the young man was found Sunday afternoon under a trunk, in a shallow pond in the Taikoteroga area, less than 24 hours after her father, Luciano Fratolin, had contacted local authorities to report the alleged abduction of his daughter. THE A 45 -year -old man has now been arrested and is persecuted for murder and hiding body as he fell into contradictions.
However, in his first appearance in court yesterday (22.07.2025) declared innocent for the categories attributed to him.
The preliminary forensic examination performed at the Glenes Falls Hospital showed that Melina’s death is due to ‘Suffocation as a result of drowning’as announced by New York State Police on Tuesday afternoon. Her death was officially described as homicide.
At the same time a lot of media have been trying to shed light on the case in the last 24 hours, since The father’s motivation remains unknown so far. According to New York Post, Little Melina had spoken to her mother about an hour before her assassination, which is believed to occur between 7:40 and 9:12 last Saturday night. The woman said that then she didn’t seem to be suspicious.
The hours that followed, however, she began to worry, after her ex -husband stopped responding to her messages when she asked him when the two would return to Montreal. Saturday is supposed to be the last day of their holiday in the US.
The whole time of the shocking case
Luciano Fratolin, who is originally from Ethiopia and Italy, had claimed to the police before arresting that little Melina Galani-Fatolin had fallen victim to abduction, with his complaint immediately moving the suspicions of the authorities after no evidence was found.
In particular, in false reference to abduction Submitted on Saturday night (19.07.2025), the man claimed that two men in white van grabbed Melina, causing the Amber Alert issue.
“Mr. Fratolin said he had stopped in a parking lot near I-87, in the Lake George area, to urinate. He initially said that he was removed from his vehicle and when he returned, his child had disappeared.
Reported a suspicious white vehicle near the spot and two men in it. This scenario was thoroughly investigated and rejected, “New York State Deputy Governor Robert McConl told reporters, according to the Montreal Journal.
The lifeless body of the 9 -year -old girl was found a few hours later under a trunk in a shallow water body on the north end of Lake George, near Tikonaroga, with authorities declaring that There are no evidence of abduction. Then came the arrest of the 45 -year -old and the charges against him.
Both Fratolin and his Greek -born wife, from whom he got divorced in 2019, lived in Quebec. Little Melina was staying with her mother and was in New York as part of a holiday scheduled with her father. The two had reached the US state on July 11.
The last time she was seen alive the 9 -year -old was around 5:30 pm on Saturday afternoon, at a restaurant in Saratoga Springs with her father, as shown by a security camera. Melina allegedly contacted her mother by phone an hour later and there was nothing worrying. Their return to Quebec was scheduled for that day.
According to the case file, the 9 -year -old was murdered between 7:40 and 9:12 the same night.
Authorities have not yet made announcements about the motivation behind the shocking crime. There were no previous complaints or incidents of domestic violence. The girl’s mother said she had no concern about the child’s safety.
However, according to local Montreal media, Fratolin allegedly faced serious financial problems: He had the debts of hundreds of thousands of dollars and even had trouble paying his daughter.
Fratolin He was also involved in legal dispute with his partner, with which they were co -owners of Bed and Breakfast, according to recent court documents cited by La Presse.
According to the same documents, Fratolin used revenue from the property to pay his daughter’s diet, while in the same building she had stored her clothes and toys.
However, last spring, as he claims in a lawsuit filed in April, the owner of the building banned him to enter the property.
Fratolin also accuses his partner of using the corporate credit card to renovate the building and illegally operate Bed and Breakfast with a different name, as stated in the lawsuit.
He even reached the point of accusing him of threatening him of preventing him from entering Quebec “because of his company’s unpaid taxes”, according to the lawsuit.
His partner still allegedly argued that – now suspected of murder – he was trying to escape the country, something Fratolin categorically refuses.