The mother of nine-year-old Melina Frattolin testified in Essex County Court that her daughter had objected to travelling abroad with her father months before he allegedly killed her during a trip to New York state. Kali Galanis said Melina did not want to accompany her father, Luciano Frattolin, on the earlier planned journey, raising questions that are now central to the murder trial over his intentions and their relationship. The testimony forms part of the prosecution's case as it seeks to establish a pattern of behaviour preceding the girl's death.

Galanis told jurors that Frattolin, her ex-partner, had wanted to take Melina to his native Ethiopia for two weeks in January 2025, but the trip was cancelled after their daughter's objections. Melina was later killed during what prosecutors describe as a summer trip to New York with her father, and the case is proceeding through the Canadian and US courts as the trial continues.