During this situation between the Gambino family and the Cuban cartel, DeMeo committed his most public murder after mistaking a man for a Cuban assassin. The victim, Dominick Ragucci, was actually a 19-year-old paying his way through college by selling vacuum cleaners door to door. After DeMeo saw him parked in front of his house, he mistook him for a Cuban hitman and ended up pursuing the young man in a car chase that ended with Ragucci being shot to death by DeMeo after his vehicle became too damaged to continue driving. After this Anthony Gaggi met with DeMeo and ordered him to stop stalling and kill Rosenberg before there were any more innocent victims.