Luciano Frattolin Sentenced in Daughter’s Murder

Luciano Frattolin was sentenced in New York on October 14 to 25 years to life in prison for the second-degree murder of his nine-year-old daughter, Melina, and an additional one to three years for concealing her body. The sentences are to run consecutively, according to prosecutors. Judge Tatiana Coffinger imposed the sentence in Essex County Court, two months after a jury found Frattolin guilty of both charges. The jury returned its verdict on August 10 after about an hour of deliberation. Frattolin will not be eligible for parole before serving 25 years on the murder sentence, according to the court account. The judge rejected a defence motion to set aside the verdict. Frattolin’s lawyers issued a notice of appeal after sentencing. The sources do not specify the grounds for the appeal. Melina was found dead in a pond in Ticonderoga, New York, on July 20, 2025, beneath a rock. She had been travelling in the region with her father, and her family had expected them to return to Montreal. Frattolin reported that she had been kidnapped, but prosecutors argued at trial that evidence contradicted his account. Prosecutors presented car-location and cellphone data, surveillance...