The cause of death of the 9-year-old girl who was found dead in Ticonderoga over the weekend appears to be asphyxia due to drowning and ruled a homicide, according to an autopsy released Tuesday.

Melina Galanis Frattolin was found in a shallow pond in Ticonderoga after a multiagency search, police said. She had been reported missing by her father on Saturday night. Her father, Luciano Frattolin, said she was last seen in the area of Interstate 87 near Exit 22 in Lake George and was possibly taken by men in a white van, according to New York State Police. After authorities identified inconsistencies in Frattolin's account of events and the timeline he provided, an investigation led to police determining that no abduction had occurred, troopers said.

Frattolin, 45, of Montreal, faces a sec

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