But today tourists in Little Italy encountered a different kind of Mafia when a swarm of bees descended on legendary Mulberry Street.

They screamed in terror as hundreds of buzzing honeybees suddenly appeared around a mailbox at midday.

The panic was so great NYPD officers were forced to cordon off an entire stretch of sidewalk from the corner with Grand Street while they waited for reinforcements - New York's own beekeeping association.

It remained closed for hours as frustrated restaurateurs looked on and visitors gathered round the mailbox to take photos of the blanket of insects on their camera phones.

Some compared it to a movie set, as police officers stood guard to make sure no-one got hurt by the invasion.

The box, outside the Italian-American Museum, was almost entirely covered by bees for several hours.

But soon help arrived in the form of Elie Miodownik, from the New York City Beekeepers' Association, who turned up in full protective costume to rescue the bees and take them to a new hive.

He was then joined by an NYPD beekeeper, and together they inspected the swarm to find the queen.

Mr Midownik told DNAInfo: 'It's a swarm, a natural phenomenon when a beehive gets overcrowded. It tends to happen more in the spring or summertime. It means that there's a beehive within a couple blocks.' Read More