ELIZABETHTOWN, N.Y. — A forensic pathologist testified Tuesday that 9-year-old Melina Frattolin drowned in filthy, mud-filled water, her lungs, airway and stomach packed with debris and plant matter, as her father sat in court and refused to look at photographs of her body.

Luciano Frattolin, 45, a Montreal coffee entrepreneur, is on trial in Essex County Court for second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse in the July 2025 death of his daughter. He has pleaded not guilty.

Dr. Michael Sikirica, who performed the autopsy, told jurors the death was “definitely a drowning case.” Melina’s body was recovered on July 20, 2025, from a shallow, knee-deep pond in a wooded area near Paragon Brook and Eagle Lake in Ticonderoga, close to Lake George. Rangers found her submerged, covered in a large amount of mud, with her legs protruding from under a log and a stone placed on her torso.

“The lungs were just full of black material, basically mud and plant debris,” Sikirica testified. Tissue samples showed the material deep in her airways, which had become blocked. Her lungs were hyper-expanded. A large scratch was noted on her stomach along with small bruises on her neck and shoulder.

Prosecutors displayed graphic crime-scene and autopsy photos of the girl’s pale, lifeless body on courtroom screens. Jurors viewed them. Frattolin, however, refused to look. He shielded his gaze and continued writing on a legal pad, according to reports from the hearing.

Frattolin, founder of the Montreal-based Gambella Coffee company and a dual Ethiopian-Italian citizen, had reported his daughter missing on the evening of July 19, 2025. He claimed two men in a white van abducted her while the pair were driving home to Canada after a trip in the Adirondacks. Investigators quickly found inconsistencies in his account. Melina’s body was located the following day less than 24 hours after the report.

Prosecutors allege Frattolin killed the girl and staged the kidnapping story as a cover-up. Earlier testimony included claims that he told an investigator it “would’ve been easier” to murder her overseas in Italy or Ethiopia. Melina’s mother, Kali Galanis, has testified that the child had expressed fear about traveling with her father in the months before her death.

The trial continues, with additional witnesses expected. Frattolin remains in custody.

Sources

• New York Post