“Her daughter never came home”: The hours before the death of Melina Frattolin

On a pleasant July afternoon in 2025, a father and his nine-year-old daughter embarked on a road trip from Montreal to New York, with the intention of returning home to Montreal later that evening. Tragically, the daughter never made it back home. Her father reported her missing, and her body was discovered hours later in a marsh in rural New York.

The Frattolins began their journey at around 4:30 p.m., arriving at a McDonald's in Saratoga Springs, New York. Melina, excitedly playing with her hair and smiling, sent a video to her mother via text. Surveillance footage revealed their departure from the car, with Melina skipping across the parking lot before they settled into their seats to eat.

As they continued their drive, Melina played mobile games during their meal. She appeared to be content and carefree, wearing pink shorts and a black-and-white striped shirt. Their last communication took place at 5:30 p.m., when Melina spoke with her mother on her father's phone, expressing no distress.

Around 6:30 p.m., Melina spoke briefly with her mother again, this time using her father's phone. By 6:35 p.m., Frattolin left the northbound interstate, heading south towards Schroon Lake in the Adirondacks region. Over the next few hours, he made several trips along bodies of water, apparently searching for a suitable spot for Melina to swim.

At around 7:25 p.m., Frattolin stopped his vehicle near a hiking trail in Ticonderoga, New York, where he would leave his daughter's body the following day. Melina's partially covered body was found in a marsh near this pull-off, with a large rock placed on her chest and a fallen tree obstructing her body. An autopsy revealed that Melina had died from asphyxia caused by drowning.

Her mother contacted Frattolin at 8:42 p.m., expressing concern about his arrival time. Frattolin responded, claiming he would be arriving in 20 minutes. At 8:55 p.m., Frattolin sent a Google Maps search for "Melina" from his phone, potentially indicating he was looking for her whereabouts. Just before departing from the parking area, he conducted a Google Maps search for "Melina," suggesting he had become aware of her missing.

At 9:09 p.m., he returned to the interstate, heading south away from Montreal. At 9:32 p.m., he stopped at a roadside rest stop, where he allegedly claimed Melina had been kidnapped by two men.