Global Courant
A New Jersey insurance lawyer was tied by a drinking glass to a series of cold case rapes, Boston prosecutors revealed during his arraignment.
Matthew Nilo, 35, appeared in Suffolk Superior Court Monday on charges of raping three women he picked up in a car and sexually assaulting a fourth while she was jogging in Boston’s Charlestown neighborhood in 2007 and 2008.
Nilo is said to have committed the brutal attacks after he graduated from high school, but was only arrested last week at his home in Weehawken, New Jersey.
Boston police and the FBI used forensic genetic genealogy, which combines DNA analysis with historical and genealogical data, to track down Nilo in 2022, Assistant District Attorney Lynn Feigenbaum said in court.
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Matthew Nilo will be charged with rape in Boston’s Suffolk Superior Court Monday, June 5, 2023. His attorney, Joseph Cataldo, is at left. (Pat Greenhouse/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)
Investigators matched the DNA profile of the three rape victims to the profile of at least one of Nilo’s relatives, which had been uploaded to a public DNA database, and narrowed down their suspect file to the cyber insurance claims attorney, Feigenbaum said.
But authorities had to confirm their suspicion and earlier this year began observing Nilo, who worked at Cowbell Cyber in Manhattan.
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They got their break after obtaining a drinking glass he had used at a company event that matched the DNA profile left on the three rape victims.
Nilo pleaded not guilty Monday to three counts of aggravated rape, two counts of kidnapping, one count of assault with intent to rape and one count of assault and battery. Judge Edward Curley set bail at $500,000 and ordered Nilo to wear a GPS tracker if he is released.
A woman, believed to be Matthew Nilo’s fiancée, watches his extradition hearing in Hudson County Superior Court in Jersey City, New Jersey on Thursday, June 1, 2023. (Kevin C. Downs for Fox News Digital)
His fiancée appeared in court but declined to comment, local news outlet WCVB5 reported.
Prosecutors said the rape spree began when Nilo was 19, about a year after he graduated from Boston Latin School, revealing harrowing new details of the attacks.
A 23-year-old woman left a bar when she couldn’t find her car on August 18, 2007, and a man she didn’t know offered to help. Instead of looking for her car, he drove her to Terminal Street.
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“The man told her to shut up or he would kill her,” Feigenbaum said, then raped her in the grass near a railroad track.
In November of the same year, he allegedly struck again. Another 23-year-old woman, who had left a bar after attending her high school reunion, allegedly climbed into Nilo’s car thinking it was a taxi.
Genetic genealogy led researchers to Boston serial rape suspect Matthew Nilo. (Kevin C. Downs for Fox News Digital/Facebook)
Instead of taking her home, he allegedly flashed a knife, drove her to Terminal Street, and raped her.
In August 2008, he targeted a 36-year-old woman who was acting near Boston Common. Nilo allegedly offered her money if she got into his car, and then drove her to the same street.
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“Shortly after they got out of the car, he tackled the victim to the ground, held a gun to her back and raped her both vaginally and anally,” the prosecutor said.
The three victims reported the attacks and their rape kits returned the same male DNA profile, which was entered into the Combined DNA Index System but yielded no hit.
According to Matthew Nilo’s since-deleted Facebook page, he recently proposed to his fiancé. (Facebook/Matthew Nilo)
Nilo has also been charged with assaulting a 44-year-old woman, whom he allegedly ambushed as she jogged down Terminal Street.
“The victim fought him off with her gloved hand to poke his eyes,” Feigenbaum said.
The glove was later sent to a private lab, and testing showed that the DNA profile on the garment was 314 times more likely to belong to Nilo than any other male in the population, prosecutors said.
Nilo’s attorney, Joseph Cataldo, told Fox News Digital that his client denies the allegations.
Nilo was arraigned Monday in Suffolk County Superior Court, Massachusetts, on charges of sexually assaulting four women from 2007 to 2008. (Facebook/Matthew Nilo)
“Mr. Nilo maintains his innocence. If the government obtained DNA evidence from my client without a search warrant, the constitutionality of that action will certainly be challenged in court,” Cataldo said.
Nilo proved to be a respected and productive member of society, receiving his bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Wisconsin – Madison and later graduating from the University of San Francisco Law School.
Global Courant
Since leaving Massachusetts, Nilo has lived in Wisconsin, California, New York and New Jersey. Authorities urged other potential victims to contact Boston police or the FBI.
Fox News’ Audrey Conklin contributed to this report.
Rebecca Rosenberg is an accomplished journalist and author of books with a focus on crime and criminal justice. Email tips to rebecca.rosenberg@fox.com and @ReRosenberg.
