Killer Santa Bruce Pardo Found With $17k and Ticket to Canada

It was family tradition that every year a neighbor would dress like Santa Claus, knock on the front door and disperse presents. But this year, that neighbor moved away; there was no Santa Claus until Bruce Pardo arrived. The bloodbath began when an 8-year-old girl attending a Christmas Eve party answered a knock at the door. Pardo stood there, dressed like Santa and carrying what appeared to a present pulled out a handgun and shot her in the face, then began shooting indiscriminately as partygoers tried to flee. – from MSNBC

A man who carried out a Christmas Eve massacre in a Santa suit at the home of his former in-laws apparently shot some of the nine victims execution-style and committed suicide rather than fleeing to Canada only after accidentally burning himself when fuel he sprayed in the home blew up, police said Friday. Emerging details indicated Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, 45, devised an extensive plan to destroy his ex-wife’s family after a costly divorce that was finalized earlier in the week, just months after losing his aerospace job. Pardo was able to drive to his brother’s home in the Sylmar area of Los Angeles, broke in and shot himself in the head. His brother discovered the body early Thursday. Pardo had airline tickets to Canada and $17,000 in cash on his body, some attached to his legs with Saran Wrap and some in a girdle, the chief said. – from San Jose