COVINA, Calif., Dec. 27 (UPI) -- Police say a California man who killed nine people in a Christmas Eve assault had an elaborate escape plan that included a backup rental getaway car.
Investigators Saturday released the names of nine people they believe were victims of Bruce Jeffrey Pardo's rampage Tuesday night in Covina, Calif., in which he stormed into a house and unleashed a hail of gunfire before setting fire to the house, using a flammable accelerant.
The apparent victims include Sylvia Pardo, 43, Bruce Pardo's ex-wife; her parents, Joseph Ortega, 80, and Alicia Ortega, 70; her sister, Alicia Ortiz, 46; and her sister's son, Michael Ortiz, 17.
Sylvia Pardo's brother, Charles Ortega, 50, and his wife, Cheri, 45, were also unaccounted for, as was another brother, James, 52, and his wife, Teresa, 51, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Police said they were listing the victims as missing because the nine bodies recovered from the house were too badly burned to be identified immediately.
Police said Saturday they had determined that Bruce Pardo had rented a second getaway car to use as a backup in case his plan to catch a flight out of state early Christmas morning went wrong. As the house burned, the Santa Claus suit Bruce Pardo was wearing melted to his skin, causing third-degree burns.
Police found Bruce Pardo dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at his brother's house 40 miles away in Sylmar, Calif. He had $17,000 in cash and a plane ticket when his body was found.
