A man whose 9-year-old daughter was found dead after he reported that she was abducted while they were vacationing in upstate New York has been charged with murder

Luciano Frattolin is accused of murdering his daughter, Melina, 9, while on vacation in upstate New York, per the police

The search for missing 9-year-old Melina Frattolin ended in heartbreak after her body was discovered near Ticonderoga, New York. The young girl was reported missing on July 19, 2025, and was initially believed to have been abducted.

Luciano Frattolin, 45, has been charged with his daughter’s murder after police say he fabricated a story that she was kidnapped

Hours after an Amber Alert was issued for Melina Frattolin on July 20, the 9-year-old was found dead in Ticonderoga, N.Y. Police said 'there is no indication that an abduction occurred' after finding 'inconsistencies' in her father's account of events.

New York State Police will be releasing information about 9-year-old Melina Frattolin's death Monday 10 a.m. at the State Police barracks in Latham.

In 2020, New York did away with its law allowing police misconduct records to be private. But a law that previously greenlit the destruction of many of those same records quietly remained on the books.

"That departments make these documents so hard to access is nothing new, but it ...makes it seem like they have something they don’t want us to see.”