A father who reported his daughter’s disappearance over the weekend has been arrested on charges of murder, according to state officials. 

On Monday, July 21, 2025, New York State Police confirmed the arrest of Canadian father Luciano Frattolin, 45, according to a press release emailed to . Mr. Frattolin stands charged with second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse in connection with the weekend disappearance of his 9-year-old daughter, Melina Frattolin, in the Adirondack region, Upstate New York.

Police stated Mr. Frattolin, on Saturday at around 10:00 p.m., notified local authorities of a “possible abduction” near Exit 22 of Interstate 87 in Lake George. Officials with the Warren County Sheriff’s Office responded to the area and issued an AMBER Alert for the missing child. 

New York State Forest Rangers, at around 1:50 p.m. on Sunday, found the girl dead “in the shallow water of a pond” in Ticonderoga, not far from the Vermont state border. A cause of death has not yet been determined. 

Here’s what we know about the developing story.

The events leading up to the child’s death

The Montreal-based father-daughter pair legally entered the country on July 11, part of a prearranged custodial agreement between the child’s parents, according to state officials’ press release. On Saturday evening, at around 5:30 p.m., video surveillance captured the pair at a restaurant in Saratoga Springs, New York, where Melina Frattolin placed a call to her mother and reported nothing wrong about the planned vacation.

“The mother and [Luciano] Frattolin have been estranged since 2019,” State Police stated. “The child resided full time with her mother, and [Luciano] Frattolin visited with child when in Canada.”

The father and daughter’s U.S. trip included visits to Connecticut and New York City, according to Rochester’s Democrat and Chronicle.

State Police said Luciano Frattolin was expected to return Melina Frattolin to her mother in Montreal — about 200 miles north of Saratoga Springs — the night she disappeared. 

Just a few hours after Melina Frattolin’s phone call in Saratoga Springs, the father called 911. 

Luciano Frattolin reports an abduction

Luciano Frattolin notified authorities Saturday night about his missing daughter, according to the Warren County Sheriff’s Office. 

“The Warren County Sheriff’s Office initially led the investigation,” they stated. “As the case progressed, law enforcement identified inconsistencies in the father’s account of events and the timeline he provided.”

The sheriff’s office turned the investigation over to State Police “due to jurisdictional considerations.”

Mr. Frattolin reportedly told authorities he pulled his vehicle over in the Lake George area to urinate, and when he returned to the vehicle, Melina Frattolin was gone, according to Plattsburgh, New York’s NBC affiliate WPTZ. 

State Police Captain Robert McConnell, Commander of Troop G’s Bureau of Investigation, said Luciano Frattolin reported “a suspicious white van” fleeing the scene, according to the Rochester outlet.

“No evidence has been located to support the reports from Frattolin of an abduction involving a suspicious white van in the area of the alleged disappearance,” New York officials stated Monday. 

They believed the child was already dead by the time officials received the report of a missing child. 

“The investigation has determined sometime after Melina’s phone call with her mother and before Frattolin’s 911 call he allegedly murdered Melina and left her body in a remote area where she was later discovered by law enforcement.”

Warren County and State officials were assisted by the Essex County Sheriff’s Office, the Ticonderoga Police Department, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, New York State Forest Rangers, and K9 and Aviation units with the State Police.

Troopers further thanked the District Attorneys’ Offices in Warren and Essex Counties, the Montreal Police Department, and the FBI in an updated release following Luciano Frattolin’s arrest. 

Authorities react to the case of Melina Frattolin

On Sunday evening, the Warren County Sheriff’s Office said there were “no words to express how deeply saddened we all are.”

“To all those who investigated today’s tragic outcome, we applaud you,” the sheriff’s office stated. “A heartfelt thank you to our Communications Officers who fielded 800+ calls from the public trying to help.”

New York Governor Kathy Hochul commented on the girl’s death on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, calling it “heartbreaking.”

“This is certainly a difficult case, and a heartbreaking investigation,” Trooper McConnell told the Rochester outlet. “While these cases are very rare, they are incredibly tragic.”