The Christmas Eve party in a Los Angeles family home was in full swing when an eight year old girl opened the door to Santa. But instead of giving her the large gift-wrapped box he was holding he shot the child in the face, then burst through the house shooting indiscriminately at fleeing guests. As the 25 party goers tried desperately to escape, the gunman used his 'present' to spray inflammable liquid that quickly engulfed the house in flames. By the time he had finished his slaughter, at least eight of the party guests were dead and two children were seriously injured. It was Bruce Pardo's final revenge against his ex-wife, after a year of marriage ended in an acrimonious divorce. The massacre took place at her parents' home in Covina, a quiet LA suburb during their annual Christmas party. Pardo's parents-in-law and his wife, who have been listed as missing , are thought to be among the victims. When the fire was extinguished early on Thursday, officers found three charred bodies in the living room area. Later in the day they discovered five more bodies in the ashes. "They were met with a scene that was just indescribable," Kim Raney, the police chief, said.
The Christmas Eve party was something of a family tradition for the family and usually lasted into the early hours of Christmas Day. "Christmases were that special time of the year. It meant so much to them," Rosa Ordaz, a family friend of the victims, told KCBS-TV. In past years, a neighbour dressed as Santa Claus had entertained the guests. The neighbour had moved away but when Pardo arrived just before midnight, the revellers thought he had come to entertain them. Instead, he slaughtered them.
David Salgado, a neighbour, said he saw the eight-year-old victim being escorted to an ambulance by four SWAT team members as flames up to twelve metres high consumed the house. "It was really ugly," Mr Salgado said. Another neighbour, Jan Gregory, said she saw a teenage boy flee the home, screaming: "They shot my family."
A 16-year-old girl was shot in the back, and a 20-year-old woman broke her ankle when she escaped by jumping from a second-story window. The gunshot injuries of the 8-year old and the 16-year-old are not believed to be life threatening, police said.
Police said it was impossible to tell how many of the victims died of gunshot wounds or from the fire. "They are too badly burned and will have to be identified by dental records," Lieutenant Pat Buchanan of the Covina Police department said.
After his rampage Pardo, 45, threw off the Santa suit and fled down the street, guests later told police. He went to his brother's home about 25 miles away in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles. No one was home, so Pardo let himself in, police said. Police were called to the home early on Christmas Day, and officers found Pardo dead from a single bullet to the head. "He died of self-inflicted wounds. We believe it was a marital dispute," said Lt Buchanan.
Investigators seeking further information about Pardo's motives have begun searching his home in the suburban Los Angeles community of Montrose.