Long Beach man gets 22 years in prison for ax attack on former coworker

Anthony Calvo pleaded guilty to attempted murder charges for striking a taxi company dispatcher repeatedly in the head and face with an ax

A workplace grudge, an ax, and a predawn ambush that left a man clinging to life.

That sequence of events has now put Long Beach resident Anthony Calvo, 35, behind bars for the next 22 years.

Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly announced Calvo was sentenced Friday after pleading guilty last month to second-degree attempted murder in connection with the brutal 2025 Long Beach street attack on a former coworker.

Prosecutors said Calvo waited for the 60-year-old victim as he walked home from an overnight shift as a taxi dispatcher for Long Beach Taxi on Feb. 13, 2025. About 5:50 a.m., on Arizona Avenue, Calvo sprinted up from behind and struck the victim at least three times with an ax, hitting him in the head, face and arm.

The victim, who had worked with Calvo at Long Beach Taxi before Calvo left the company in 2022, managed to drag himself to the rear of his home and bang on the door for help. A family member called 911, and Long Beach Police responded.

The taxi dispatcher was rushed to Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital with serious head and jaw injuries that required multiple surgeries and put him through a long recovery.

Surveillance video footage captured the attacker in dark clothing and fleeing the scene on a white electric bicycle. Investigators later recovered a matching e-bike and a full-face mask while searching Calvo’s apartment.

Long Beach Police arrested Calvo on March 12, 2025.

“Anthony Calvo’s vicious attack last year set Long Beach residents on edge,” Donnelly said in a statement. “Spurred by a workplace dispute that this defendant decided to end with brutal violence, Calvo’s actions condemned an innocent man to round-the-clock medical care and a very long road to recovery.”

_{Top: LIRR station in Long Beach, where Long Beach Taxi is located (Google Maps Street View).}