Three die as 'Santa Claus' opens fire in US
A man dressed as Santa Claus opened fire at a Christmas Eve party near Los Angeles that subsequently caught fire, leaving three people dead, police said.
The man arrived at the party in Covina last night and immediately opened fire with a handgun, police spokesman Pat Buchanan said.
Mr Buchanan said three bodies were found after the fire was put out. He could not say how the fire started or how the three people died.
Mr Buchanan said three other people were injured. A woman in her 20s and an eight-year-old girl had gunshot wounds that were not life-threatening, and a third person had a broken ankle.
Police are seeking a man they are calling “a person of interest”, 45-year-old Bruce Jeffrey Pardo.
Mr Buchanan said Pardo is the estranged husband of a person who may have been at the party.
Covina is a quiet suburb 25 miles east of Los Angeles.
