A Little Italy native, Peter Defeo was a significant Genovese syndicate mobster. He first made headline in the 1930s following the gangland hit on gambling racketeer Ferdinand Boccia. The killers eliminated Boccia as a means of proving their worth to Vito Genovese. The crime boss had fallen out with Boccia over a business transaction. In later years Defeo was arrested in Lombardi's Restaurant in Manhattan. The 1965 incident resulted in the seizure of Defeo and a number of other La Cosa Nostra operatives. All were charged with consorting with underworld figures.