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.
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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.
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'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.
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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.
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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.
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