Americo "Pete" DePietto came from Brooklyn, New York to Chicago, Illinois and became a soldier in the Chicago Mafia Outfit. Pete as he was called was an extortionist, hitman, narcotics dealer and money order forger. At one point in his career he worked for Joseph Ferriola who was briefly Chicago syndicate boss. DePietto was hired by Desert Inn manager Ruby Kolod to kill Denver lawyer Robert Sunshine. The attorney had been involved in a failed oil deal into which Kolod and his partner, Israel Alderman, invested money.