The Night 'Santa' Committed a Christmas Massacre
Hot On The Case
Breanna Heim
5.0 • 1K Ratings
🗓️ 19 December 2025
⏱️ 38 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In this week’s investigation Hot On The Case goes back to Christmas Eve 2008. The night a man dressed as Santa Claus carried out a brutal attack at a holiday gathering in Covina, California, turning a night of celebration into unimaginable horror. This is the Covina Christmas Eve Massacre.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | It was Christmas Eve 2008. |
| 0:16.8 | Joseph and Alicia Ortega were hosting their annual Christmas party. |
| 0:21.1 | It was their favorite family tradition to have all of their children and all of their |
| 0:26.0 | grandchildren celebrating together under one roof. |
| 0:29.3 | The home was filled with Christmas joy, presents, laughter, and excited children anticipating |
| 0:35.8 | the arrival of old St. Nick himself. And then there was a knock on the |
| 0:41.4 | door. Standing outside was Santa Claus. And the moment that door opened, the man in the red suit |
| 0:49.6 | pulled out a gun and opened fire, unleashing a storm of bullets into the crowded Christmas celebration. |
| 0:57.6 | By the time that it was all over, 10 people would be dead, another three would be injured, |
| 1:04.1 | and 13 were orphans. Terror, chaos, and carnage on a Southern California Christmas Eve. |
| 1:10.8 | This was not a random act of violence. |
| 1:13.4 | The man dressed is Santa, armed himself with four guns and a makeshift flame thrower. |
| 1:18.0 | This wasn't Santa Claus. |
| 1:20.2 | This was a monster who twisted one of the most innocent symbols of Christmas |
| 1:24.5 | into a weapon of terror. |
| 1:27.2 | A monster that turned joy into horror and a family |
| 1:31.5 | tradition into a massacre. This man dressed as Santa Claus was Bruce Pardo, and this is the case |
| 1:40.0 | of the Covina Christmas Eve massacre. My name is Brianna, and I'm hot on the case. |
| 1:54.2 | At Liddle, we've got the freshest veg this Christmas for only 8p each. |
| 1:58.9 | Get British parsnips, sprouts, swedes, one kilo of carrots and two kilos of potatoes. Oh, and shallots too. At 8p each, you're going to need a bigger colander. Lidlid, more to value. Offers valid 18th to the 24th of December, subject to availability, selected stores, GB only. I'll now hand you over to my best man, Eddie. Wow, wow, wow. Second time's a charm, eh, Billy Boy. Oh, God. Substitution, courtesy of Paddy Power, embarrassing Eddie, makes way for sensible Samuel. Cool, that was close. You might not always pick the right starter, but your sub can still deliver, because with Paddy's super sub, your bet rolls over to the player coming on. |
| 2:36.5 | Paddy Power. |
| 2:37.4 | Valid on selected leagues and markets only. |
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