Matthew Nilo, an attorney from New Jersey, returned to court on Monday to address serious accusations from more than 17 years ago, alleging he raped or sexually assaulted several women in Boston. At the center of the latest legal maneuverings was an effort by his defense team to suppress DNA evidence that was collected by the FBI during a covert operation at a Manhattan restaurant.

The 38-year-old lawyer appeared in Suffolk Superior Court, accompanied by his fiancée, Laura Griffin, who has steadfastly supported him by attending court sessions throughout this ordeal.

The crux of the hearing involved the DNA evidence that prosecutors claim connects Nilo to a series of assaults that occurred in 2007 and 2008 in Boston. At that time, Nilo was just 19 or 20 years old.

Nilo’s defense attorneys argue the evidence should be dismissed on the grounds that the FBI collected it without a warrant during a stakeout at Manhattan’s Oscar Wilde Restaurant and Bar in 2023.

BOSTON SERIAL RAPE SUSPECT MATTHEW NILO RELEASED ON BAIL

According to court testimony reported by The Boston Globe, FBI agents followed Nilo from his New Jersey home to the Manhattan restaurant after receiving information from Boston authorities.

The agents sat near him for hours and coordinated with restaurant staff to collect items he used during the meal, including drinking glasses, a fork and a napkin.

BOSTON SERIAL RAPE SUSPECT MATTHEW NILO NOW ACCUSED OF ATTACKING 8 WOMEN

Nilo’s defense attorneys have argued he did not abandon the items because he had no meaningful opportunity to take them with him when he left the restaurant.

“The commonwealth is claiming that they have some connection between Mr. Nilo and DNA from 15 years ago, but that evidence was presumably taken from tableware in New York without a warrant and searching it for DNA,” his attorney, Joseph Cataldo, previously said. Cataldo added that the alleged DNA evidence was “taken without his knowledge or consent or, most importantly, without a warrant.”

Prosecutors have countered that once the items were left behind and cleared by staff in the ordinary course of business, Nilo had relinquished any expectation of privacy over them.

FBI Boston Special Agent in Charge Joe Bonavolonta said in May 2023 that Nilo’s arrest was “the direct result of the FBI’s use of investigative genetic genealogy,” which he described as “a unique method used to generate new leads in unsolved sex assaults, homicides and other violent crimes.”

Prosecutors revealed during a June 2023 hearing that investigators matched a DNA profile left on three rape victims to the profile of at least one of Nilo’s relatives that had been uploaded to a public genetic genealogy database. They later matched that DNA to a sample obtained from a drinking glass Nilo used at a corporate event in New York, prosecutors said.

Nilo has remained free on bail throughout the proceedings. His fiancée has stood by his side throughout the drawn-out hearings.

He was initially charged in May 2023 with three counts of aggravated rape, two counts of kidnapping, one count of assault with intent to rape and one count of indecent assault and battery.

In July 2023, a Suffolk County, Massachusetts, grand jury indicted Nilo on seven additional charges, including one count of rape, one count of aggravated rape, three counts of assault with intent to rape and two counts of indecent assault and battery.

News Media has reached out to Cataldo for comment.

General Motors is facing a backlash after it laid off over 1,000 employees at its premier Detroit assembly facility on Friday, while concurrently announcing the installation of 50 state-of-the-art robots.

These advanced machines, dubbed ‘cobots,’ have taken their place on the assembly line at GM’s Factory Zero in Michigan. The automaker is seeking to cut expenses as demand for its electric vehicles wanes, as various reports have indicated.

In their new roles, the robots collaborate with the remaining staff, aiding in the attachment of vehicle body panels as the cars progress along the production line, AutoBlog has reported.

The decision has been met with strong opposition from United Auto Workers Local 22 President James Cotton, who has dismissed GM’s claim that the cobots are not replacing jobs previously held by humans.

According to a company representative speaking to the Daily Mail, GM insists that these robots are crucial for maintaining competitiveness at the Detroit-Hamtramck electric truck plant, while also enhancing safety and ergonomics on the factory floor. 

‘At Factory ZERO, we are implementing them alongside our team – helping improve safety and ergonomahahics while keeping our operations flexible and competitive,’ the spokesperson said, adding that the affected workers have been placed on temporary layoff rather than permanently terminated.

But Cotto’s statement to Crain’s Detroit Business appears to dispute that characterization, arguing the machines have come at the expense of union jobs.

‘Our manpower is being taken away from us,’ Cotton told Crain’s. ‘From top to bottom, we’re disgusted that they have cobots in our plants.’ 

The number of labor hours required to build a car has fallen by 50 percent to 70 percent since the 1980s, Crain’s reported.

But that efficiency shift has not translated into lower wages for workers; UAW pay rose significantly in its 2023 contract win, with the union expected to push for stronger protections ahead of its 2028 negotiations.

Cotton also raised safety concerns about robots operating in close proximity to human workers, disputing GM’s claims that the technology improves conditions on the line. 

He said the union has since filed grievances against the company over the deployment of cobots.

The cobots arrive as GM scales back its once-aggressive electric vehicle push, which has been pressured by slowing demand and high production costs. 

The automaker has also paused production at its Factory ZERO plant multiple times over the past year amid the shifting EV landscape.

The latest developments are consistent with plans GM executives have discussed for several years. 

During the company’s GM Forward event in late 2025, leadership emphasized the growing role of artificial intelligence, automation and advanced manufacturing technologies. 

GM also announced a partnership with Nvidia focused on developing next-generation factory robotics and AI-powered manufacturing systems, with CEO Mary Barra saying at the time that automation would improve efficiency while allowing employees to focus on higher-value work.

The temporary layoffs, which were announced Friday morning to impacted employees, were across the business. 

Some were attributed to poor performance, while others formed part of a broader review aimed at reorganizing priorities at the automaker, according to a person familiar with the decision who spoke with CNBC on condition of anonymity. 

A majority of those affected were salaried workers at GM’s global technical center in Warren, Michigan, the person said. The United Auto Workers said roughly 50 union members were also among those laid off.

The move comes as GM targets $2 billion in fixed-cost reductions this year amid slowing US sales, deteriorating performance in China and a recalibration of its ‘all-in’ electric vehicle strategy as consumer adoption comes in weaker than expected, according to CNBC.

On Reddit, one post from a GM employee in the r/GeneralMotors community described being laid off the same day, writing that they ‘had been talking to my manager about when my title was going to get switched’ and felt ‘burned out’ before receiving an email notice rather than a call.

‘I carried my team in automation, and to not even get a call from HR just an email was a gut punch,’ the user wrote. 

‘I had a feeling I would be let go because they wouldn’t switch me to dev… I told my manager what would happen to all the QAs in June. I guess all the QAs are now out at GM.’

The post reflects growing frustration among some employees over how the cuts were handled, particularly within technical and automation-related roles.

President Shawn Fain said workers are ‘in a fight for humanity,’ according to the News Tribune.

‘The fruits of our labor have multiplied like never before, but workers aren’t reaping the harvest,’ he said.

‘And if AI continues to be used as an accessory to that crime, it has to be stopped – it doesn’t have to be this way – in a just society, when workers create more value, they see more of the benefit.’

Meanwhile, GM reported $4.25 billion in first-quarter 2026 profits, up 22 percent from a year earlier, according to Yahoo Finance.