Alleged killer dad Luciano Frattolin didn't like ‘being tied down' by daughter, former friend says
Frattolin, 45, who is charged with murdering his 9-year-old daughter Melina while on vacation in New York last week, spent most of his time in his birth country of Ethiopia, where he has stakes in a mine and hotel construction, the ex-associate told the Montreal Gazette.
'He loved his daughter, but he didn't like the idea of being tied down,' said the friend, who knew Frattolin when they both lived in Ethiopia.
Advertisement
3 Police arrested Luciano Frattolin after he claimed his daughter Melina had been abducted.
Essex County Sheriff's Office
Melina lived in Canada with her mom, who split with Frattolin when he cheated, according to the former pal, who also fell out with him over a deal where 'some of the funds disappeared.'
Frattolin was said to live in Canada but his 'real connection to Montreal was his daughter and his ex-partner, but he didn't have any real connections to Montreal,' said the insider, who asked not to remain anonymous.
Advertisement
'From what [Frattolin] said, he truly loved [Melina]. He would visit at least once a year,' the friend said.
3 New York police released an image of Frattolin driving with his daughter on I-87.
NYS Police
Frattolin is a 'prominent' businessman in Ethiopia, where he was born to an Ethiopian mother and Italian father, the friend said. He founded an iron ore mine there in 2019 along with a Chinese-based company and secured a 20-year contract, according to a report published online and seen by the Montreal Gazette.
But tragedy struck that same year when he was assaulted and suffered permanent damage to one of his eyes, the former friend claimed.
Advertisement
Melina's mother came to visit him in Ethiopia while he was recovering — and found he was seeing another woman, according to the pal.
'That is why they separated,' he said.
3 Melina Frattolin was found dead in a shallow pond after her father reported her missing.
Instagram/Luciano Frattolin
Frattolin hinted in a since-deleted bio that an 'unfortunate event' in 2019 that he said 'severely affected his well-being' and required a 'long and arduous' road to recovery.
Advertisement
The friend claimed Frattolin had money woes that forced him to leave Ethiopia for long stretches at a time, often traveling to Italy.
'He had a lot of bills, so any time things were about to blow up, he would travel, and go back [to Ethiopia] once things cooled down,' he said.
Follow The Post's coverage on Melina Frattolin
Frattolin maintained a luxury lifestyle and was 'very image conscious,' wearing expensive clothes and watches and never flying coach, as evidenced on his Instagram account, the former friend said.
'He was one of the first people to bring a Porsche into Ethiopia. He also had a Land Cruiser, the friend said. 'He had two [luxury] cars, so in Ethiopia, he would be considered a very well-off person.'
Frattolin shared a video of his Porsche on his Instagram showing him driving the luxury car over the dirt roads of the East African country alongside an Ethiopian tribesperson.
Frattolin pleaded not guilty to murder at a court in Ticonderoga, upstate New York, on Monday.
He is due back in court on Friday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Epoch Times
an hour ago
- Epoch Times
US Warns Travelers of Chikungunya Outbreak in China
The U.S. CDC is warning Americans to take precautions against a mosquito-borne virus outbreak in China, after one Chinese province reported thousands of cases in just one week. The United States has arrested two Chinese nationals, one of them an illegal immigrant, for allegedly exporting tens of millions of dollars' worth of mi...
San Francisco Chronicle
2 hours ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Prosecutors in Thailand issue indictments for dozens in deadly building collapse
BANGKOK (AP) — State prosecutors in Thailand have formally indicted 23 individuals and companies on charges related to the collapse of a Bangkok office building that collapsed after an earthquake, killing at least 92 people. The partially built high-rise, which was to house the new State Audit Office, was the only one in Thailand to completely collapse on March 28 due to the 7.7 magnitude earthquake, which was centered in neighboring Myanmar. Those indicted include the lead contractors for the project: Italian-Thai Development Co. and its Chinese joint venture partner for the project, the China Railway No. 10 company. Italian-Thai Development's president, Premchai Karnasuta, and China Railway No. 10's local director, Zhang Chuanling, were also indicted along with others, including designers, engineers and several other companies. The charges in the various indictments include professional negligence in design, supervision, or construction practices that failed to comply with engineering standards, resulting in danger to others and causing deaths, according to a statement from the Office of the Attorney General. Additional charges include forgery and use of forged documents. Several of those indicted Thursday had already surrendered to police and denied any wrongdoing. An investigation by police and other officials found design and structural flaws were behind the building's collapse and that some of the officially approved designs were not implemented. The epicenter of the quake was in central Myanmar, where it killed more than 3,700 people and caused major damage in Mandalay, the country's second-biggest city, and in the capital Naypyitaw. The indictment of Italian-Thai Development's Premchai is his second major tangle with the law. In 2019, he was convicted of killing protected animals and illegal possession of weapons while hunting in a wildlife sanctuary for which he served about three years in prison.
2 hours ago
Prosecutors in Thailand issue indictments for dozens in deadly building collapse
BANGKOK -- State prosecutors in Thailand have formally indicted 23 individuals and companies on charges related to the collapse of a Bangkok office building that collapsed after an earthquake, killing at least 92 people. The partially built high-rise, which was to house the new State Audit Office, was the only one in Thailand to completely collapse on March 28 due to the 7.7 magnitude earthquake, which was centered in neighboring Myanmar. Those indicted include the lead contractors for the project: Italian-Thai Development Co. and its Chinese joint venture partner for the project, the China Railway No. 10 company. Italian-Thai Development's president, Premchai Karnasuta, and China Railway No. 10's local director, Zhang Chuanling, were also indicted along with others, including designers, engineers and several other companies. The charges in the various indictments include professional negligence in design, supervision, or construction practices that failed to comply with engineering standards, resulting in danger to others and causing deaths, according to a statement from the Office of the Attorney General. Additional charges include forgery and use of forged documents. Several of those indicted Thursday had already surrendered to police and denied any wrongdoing. An investigation by police and other officials found design and structural flaws were behind the building's collapse and that some of the officially approved designs were not implemented. The epicenter of the quake was in central Myanmar, where it killed more than 3,700 people and caused major damage in Mandalay, the country's second-biggest city, and in the capital Naypyitaw. The indictment of Italian-Thai Development's Premchai is his second major tangle with the law. In 2019, he was convicted of killing protected animals and illegal possession of weapons while hunting in a wildlife sanctuary for which he served about three years in prison.
