Robert Anthony Rodgers Jr., a 51-year-old male, was shot and killed in Clifton, New Jersey, on the night of December 20, 2024, in what authorities have described as a road rage incident. A lifelong resident of Clifton before recently moving to Elmwood Park, Rodgers was a truck driver and a family man, out for some last-minute Christmas shopping with his wife when the fatal encounter occurred. The incident unfolded at approximately 11:47 p.m. at the intersection of Lakeview and Merselis avenues.
The altercation began after both vehicles came to a stop at a red light. Rodgers exited his white Honda Odyssey and approached a Ford F-150 pickup truck. An argument followed between Rodgers and the driver of the truck, 67-year-old Angel Pacheco of Clifton. During this dispute, Pacheco allegedly pulled out a gun and shot Rodgers once in the chest. When police arrived, they found Rodgers with the gunshot wound.
He was rushed to Saint Joseph's University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Angel Pacheco was arrested without incident and has been charged with first-degree murder, unlawful possession of a weapon, and possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose. In a statement to police, Pacheco claimed that Rodgers had been driving erratically behind him. He alleged that Rodgers approached his truck, punched the driver's side window three times, and then struck him twice in the face after he rolled the window down. Pacheco stated that he then grabbed a firearm from his hip. According to Pacheco, Rodgers said, 'You're going to shoot me?', and Pacheco then fired his weapon. Rodgers's wife, who was in their vehicle, recounted that the pickup truck had been driving erratically and brake-checking them before the stop. She heard a 'loud audible noise' after her husband approached the other vehicle and saw him walk back toward their van.
Known as 'Bobby' to friends and family, Robert Rodgers was a devoted husband, father of five children, and grandfather of four. Having recently purchased his first home, his sudden death just days before Christmas left his family devastated.
