Dossier
Essex County Court
Coverage of Essex County Court in the Nexus archive.
- Murdered 9-year-old begged not to go on trip with dad months before he allegedly killed her, mom testifies
The mother of 9-year-old Melina Frattolin testified that her daughter refused to travel with her father to Ethiopia months before prosecutors allege he killed her during a summer trip to New York. The father is charged with second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse after falsely reporting Melina's abduction and later admitting during questioning that killing her overseas would have been easier.