Santa Shooting Suspect Commits Suicide

Charred bodies at suburban LA home where 3 already confirmed dead

(NEWSER) - Several more bodies are in the ashes of a suburban Los Angeles home that was the scene of a Christmas Eve massacre, police tell the AP. Authorities would not say how many bodies there were; three people were already declared dead after a man dressed as Santa Claus opened fire during a holiday party. More»

Engineer carried firestarting device disguised as a gift

(NEWSER) - The death toll in the Christmas Eve massacre by a California man dressed as Santa Claus has now risen to at least eight as more details of the rampage emerge, the Los Angeles Times reports. Bruce Jeffrey Pardo first shot in the face an 8-year-old girl who answered the door at his former in-laws' home, then opened fire on his relatives, ex-wife and a crowd of holiday guests. More»

(NEWSER) - The California man who murdered his ex-wife and eight members of her family on Christmas Eve while dressed as Santa Claus had cocaine in his system, the Los Angeles Times reports. The coroner’s office said the cocaine was present in trace amounts and was only a contributing factor to Bruce Jeffrey Pardo’s rampage. After committing the murders and setting the house where they took place ablaze, Pardo took his own life. More»

Death toll at 9 after another body is found in ashes of Calif. home

(NEWSER) - The discovery of another body in the charred wreckage of a California home brings the death toll in the Christmas Eve shooting rampage to nine, ABC News reports. Police say Bruce Jeffrey Pardo, 45, suspected of shooting his former in-laws while disguised as Santa, had $10,000 in cash and a plane ticket out of the country on him when he committed suicide at his brother’s house yesterday. More»

Man opened fire at Christmas Eve party

(NEWSER) - Three people are dead and as many injured after a man dressed as Santa Claus opened fire at a Christmas Eve party, CNN reports. The suburban Los Angeles house was engulfed in a fire when police arrived, the AP adds, and Santa walked off in street clothes. Police are looking for the estranged husband of a woman who may have been at the party. More»