Police sent an alert to people's phones saying Melina Galanis Frattolin was last seen southbound in a white van on I-87 near exit 22 at 9:40 p.m. Saturday.

NEW YORK - Melina Frattolin, the 9-year-old girl from Canada who was found dead in an upstate New York pond, was drowned, according to preliminary autopsy results released Tuesday. Her father, 45-year-old Luciano Frattolin, was charged with murdering and concealing her body.

The death of a 9-year-old girl whose father initially said she was missing and possibly abducted is being investigated amid what New York State Police call inconsistencies in the father's account.

The charges Luciano Frattolin faces were not immediately available, but records show he was booked early Monday at the Essex County jail

Melina Frattolin, aged 9, was found dead in Ticonderoga, New York on July 20 hours after her father reported her missing and suggested she had been abducted. Police later determined no abduction had taken place, and noted "inconsistencies" in her father's account of her disappearance (New York State Police)

Hours after an Amber Alert was issued for Melina Frattolin on July 20, the 9-year-old was found dead in Ticonderoga, N.Y. Police said 'there is no indication that an abduction occurred' after finding 'inconsistencies' in her father's account of events.

Authorities say the father initially said his daughter had been kidnapped, triggering an Amber Alert and multi-state investigation.

Two North Country communities are holding vigils Tuesday evening in memory of the 9-year-old girl that was found dead in Ticonderoga. The reported abduction of Melina Frattolin prompted an Amber Alert very early Sunday morning.

Authorities said Melina Frattolin was found dead July 20. State troopers say there was, "no indication that an abduction occurred."