A 47-year-old Clifton man wearing a black ski mask allegedly approached an occupied vehicle near Knapp Avenue and Schoonmaker Place early Thursday morning, pointing a handgun at the driver while gripping a machete in his other hand. Police say Eddy Calixto was found less than a block away and taken into custody without incident.
According to Daily Voice, the confrontation happened in the early hours of Thursday at Knapp Avenue and Schoonmaker Place in Clifton. A 911 caller reported that Calixto knocked on the vehicle's window and pointed the handgun at the person inside. The outlet reports that police found him less than a block away. Officer Luis Candelaria located Calixto a short distance away and ordered him to drop the weapons and get on the ground, which he did, the outlet reports.
Police identified the handgun as a .22-caliber Makarov, a variant of a pistol design that dates back to Soviet military service beginning in 1951 and typically operates on a straight blowback action, according to background compiled by Wikipedia. Calixto was still dressed in black clothing and the ski mask when officers caught up with him, per the same account, and he was also carrying a machete at the time of his arrest.
Charges Include Weapons and Drug Counts
Officers searching Calixto reportedly found a small amount of suspected cocaine, according to police cited by the outlet's report. He now faces charges including unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, possession of a firearm for an unlawful purpose, aggravated assault, and possession of cocaine. Clifton Police Detective Lieutenant Robert Anderson is listed in connection with the case, the report notes.
The weapons charges carry significant prison exposure under New Jersey statute. Possessing a firearm for an unlawful purpose is a second-degree crime punishable by five to 10 years in prison, while possessing a non-firearm weapon like a machete for an unlawful purpose is a third-degree crime carrying three to five years, according to legal guidance published by Brett Rosen Law. Separately, the Graves Act source describes qualifying offenses and possible extended terms for people with prior firearm convictions, per an explainer from Denholtz Criminal Defense.
What Happens Next in Court
Calixto was turned over to the Passaic County Sheriff's Office Corrections Hub and is being held pending his first court appearance. Under the county's procedures, warrant defendants processed at the hub typically receive the next available CJP hearing within 24 hours of arrest, according to the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office, with a Public Safety Assessment conducted beforehand to help determine whether he is released or detained.
The pretrial process will determine whether Calixto is released or detained. If prosecutors move for pretrial detention, a detention hearing is typically scheduled within three days to decide whether he stays jailed until trial, per guidance from DDS&M Law. It remains an open question whether prosecutors will file that motion given the nature of the alleged confrontation.
A Quiet Corner of Clifton
The incident occurred at Knapp Avenue and Schoonmaker Place. Clifton has an estimated population approaching 90,000 residents, per Livability.com.
The City of Clifton’s zoning map includes Knapp Avenue and Schoonmaker Place and lists nearby zoning and development labels including C2 and planned-development highway commercial.
The available sources do not provide verified 2024 crime-rate figures for Clifton or Paterson. They also do not provide a verified statewide 2024 gunshot-injury total.
Calixto's arrest follows another notable Clifton police enforcement action earlier this month, when officers arrested 29-year-old Gaudencio Herrera after a brief pursuit into Paterson tied to a stolen vehicle and eluding charges. Herrera was likewise transferred to the Passaic County Sheriff's Office Corrections Hub to await a CJP court appearance, according to The Clifton Times.
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