The mother of 9-year-old Melina Frattolin testified Tuesday that her daughter did not want to travel overseas with her father months before prosecutors say he killed the girl during a summer trip to New York.Kali Galanis told jurors in Essex County Court that her ex-partner, Luciano Frattolin, wanted to take Melina to his native Ethiopia for two weeks in January 2025.But Galanis said the trip never happened after her daughter objected."She didn't want to go," Galanis testified, adding that she also became increasingly uneasy about the proposed trip.CHILD REUNITED WITH MOM AFTER TRANSGENDER DAD, PARTNER ALLEGEDLY KIDNAP ABROAD AMID GENDER SURGERY FEARS: FEDSMelina Frattolin, 9, whose mother testified that she objected to traveling overseas with her father months before prosecutors say she was killed during a trip to New York.
(New York State Police)Galanis' testimony offered jurors a glimpse into the family's disagreements over Melina's travel arrangements and her growing concerns about Frattolin's travel plans with their daughter months before Melina's death.Galanis said she had concerns about allowing Melina to travel internationally with Frattolin after the couple separated in 2019.She testified that her attorney warned her about cases in which estranged parents took children overseas and refused to return them.Galanis testified that Frattolin later proposed extending the Ethiopia trip.
She said conversations with Melina about the trip ultimately convinced her to cancel it.MAN ACCUSED OF KILLING PARTNER ARRESTED IN MEXICO NEARLY TWO YEARS AFTER FLEEING WITH THEIR TWO CHILDRENLuciano Frattolin is on trial in Essex County, New York, after pleading not guilty to one count of second-degree murder and one count of concealment of a human corpse in connection with the death of his 9-year-old daughter, Melina Frattolin.(New York State Police)"I became uncomfortable," Galanis testified."I was not ok with that anymore," she said of the proposed trip.Instead, Frattolin su...