Long Beach man sentenced to 22 years in prison for ax attack on ex-colleague
Nassau County Court. Credit: Rick Kopstein
A Long Beach man was sentenced Friday to more than two decades in prison for the attempted murder of a former co-worker with an ax, officials said.
Anthony Calvo, 35, pleaded guilty last month before Judge Robert Bogle to inflicting life-threatening injuries on an ex-colleague at Long Beach Taxi, where he worked as a driver until 2022, Newsday previously reported.
Calvo’s attack was "targeted" and stemmed from "a workplace dispute," Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly said in a news release.
Defense attorney Jason Russo, of Gaitman and Russo, said Calvo had been treated "in a mental ward of a hospital" but was released days before the attack.
"My client, who accepted responsibility, was diagnosed as schizophrenic and suffering from psychosis, and it actually took him months to even recall what he did," Russo said. "Anthony feels devastated by what he did, but this is the effects of untreated mental illness."
The attack occurred about 5:50 a.m. on Feb. 13, 2025, when the victim, who authorities have not identified, was walking home on Arizona Avenue following an overnight shift as a taxi dispatcher, according to Donnelly. Calvo "ran up to him from behind" and struck his arm, face and head with an ax, the release said.
After the man dragged himself to the backdoor from his home and a relative called 911, he was transported to Mount Sinai South Nassau in Oceanside, the district attorney said. He required multiple surgeries.
Long Beach Police arrested Calvo on March 12, 2025, Newsday previously reported. He pleaded guilty on March 20 before acting state Supreme Court Justice Robert Bogle in Mineola to second-degree attempted murder.
"Calvo will spend the next two decades in prison, but his ruthless actions condemned an innocent man to round-the-clock medical care and a very long road to recovery," the district attorney added. "We wish the victim and his family well, and hope that today’s sentence provides them with the justice they deserve."
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