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I have been listening to the Martha's Vineyard Beach and Book Club, which actually Elena recommended to me.
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Hey weirdos, my name is Ash. And I am Elena.
And this is Mobbed. Whoa, it is. I feel like I'm still stuck in Margie's voice.
I know, I kind of was too. You're a stellar.
It's hard to get out of. It is. And you know what, guys?
This is a special holiday edition. It's the holiday season.
But it's gonna get real shitty in here. It's the shitty season It's a massacre up in here Not funny at all So before we start with the real brutal shit Yay.
Let's talk about really quick. We're not getting sponsored by this, by the way.
I just really love this movie and I want everyone to watch it.
Guys, on Netflix, their original holiday movie, Klaus, go watch it.
If you have kids, go watch it with kids.
If you don't have kids, go watch it because it's great.
I love recording, but I was just watching the beginning of it with your children and I was kind of bummed that I couldn't finish the rest.
It's so good. It looks cute. And the end will have you like crying happy tears.
It's just, it's a nice movie. And I feel like we're going to add it to our arsenal of like...
Christmas Vacation, Elf, The Santa Claus.
Klaus. Those are every year that we have to watch them and now Klaus is on top of it.
And I just want to spread the word because it's real cute.
I love that. We're not getting anything out of this.
I just want to be clear. This is not an ad.
I just wanted to tell you. Netflix? Netflix, sponsor us.
So yeah, I just wanted to tell you guys that because this is going to be a real bummer of a case and you might as well have something to look forward to.
Maybe go watch Klaus after this. to get yourself back in the holiday spirit because this is definitely going to take you out of it um the other thing i just wanted to mention was we are going to keep you guys updated on that crazy case that everybody's been sharing right now that um heidi broussard um It's an awful tragic case.
She went missing in Texas. They just found her.
Yeah, this is really sad. Yeah, in the trunk of her... quote-unquote best friends car they were supposedly best friends for like 20 years This woman, Megan Fieramuska, I think it is, was in the delivery room when she gave birth to her daughter, Margo.
Margo, that's the cutest name. Isn't that adorable?
Yeah. Such a cute baby. Such a pretty girl.
Like, brand new mom. Had a six-year-old boy, too.
Went missing when she dropped him off. um and yeah she so this megan bitch is charged with murdering her and then taking Margo and pretending she was her baby.
So she had some kind of psychotic thing yeah there's some shit there and the worst part about it is she was telling everybody that this is her new baby luna Oh, I didn't know that part.
I know it gave me the heebs. And everybody was like, but wait, when were you pregnant?
Well, she pretended she was pregnant right alongside Heidi.
Oh, it's one of those cases. Yeah. Um, and yeah, so she basically, and she like assisted in the, like she was there for it.
That's always so fucked up when they assist in it.
You watched this woman give birth to her child.
You know she's a mother of two children and you took her away from those children.
You're just... hate that and then i feel even worse because everybody was thinking that it was the uh fiance oh yeah because he gave like you know the typical interview where you're kind of like side-eyeing him like yeah really and I feel bad because I mean again we nobody has been officially cleared or anything we don't know the whole story we don't know if anybody else they did say someone else might have been involved so i'm not blaming him by any means i'm right now he's innocent until proven guilty But I will say I feel bad that, like, I initially was like, oh, he did it, like, immediately.
So joke's on me. Like, I'll eat my hat on that one if it turns out.
You'll eat your what? What? You've never heard that before?
Did you say heart or hat? Hat. Oh, I thought you said... I'll eat my hat if that's not...
No, I've heard that, but I thought you said heart and I was like, okay, Boston.
No, I won't eat my heart. It sounded like you were like, I'll eat my hat out.
I'll eat my hat. uh i was like damn i'll do that too if i'm wrong you know i'll do it on my face if i'm wrong but yeah we'll keep you guys updated on that because i'm curious to see what happens in It's just such a tragic story, and I feel so awful for her kids, for Margo and her son, and for her family.
So that's just a real bummer, and R.I.P.
Heidi. And fuck you, Megan. And yeah, so moving on from that, the one other thing we have before we dive into this case is some happy news.
A little more uplifting news. We are going to be at the Gramercy Theatre in New York on January 30th.
Can't wait to see you there. That show is sold the fuck out.
But we can't wait to see everybody who bought tickets.
It's going to be litty. Then April 14th at the Punchline Clubhouse. comedy club in philadelphia we'll see you there coming at you philly i'm pretty sure there's still tickets available for philly i believe there is so go get them Then on the 15th, we will be at the DC Improv in Washington, DC.
I'm also pretty sure there's still tickets for that.
Yep, go get those tickets. We want to see our faces.
We do. Then we are playing an early show of... on may 7th at zany's nashville uh which is sold out i which i can't believe that shocked guess what oh yeah that's fucking insane But we added another fucking show because we love Nashville, baby.
We sure do. we've never been we love you but we love you anyway uh so we're gonna be playing a late show there so there are two shows there are still tickets available for the second show so Go get it.
Because the more shows we sell out, the more we can add.
Let's do this. We're already working on some others.
The link is in our bio on Instagram. I'm also going to be posting it on our website so that it can be in one central location.
And we'll be sharing other updates on that.
But without further ado. Let's jump into this case, shall we?
What beautiful Christmas story are you going to tell me today?
So this is the Covino, the Covina, excuse me, Covina.
Christmas Eve Massacre. That's so horrible.
It's already shitty to kill people, but you really gotta do it on Christmas Eve?
Yeah, and this is a real bummer of a case.
So everybody get ready because it sucks.
So excited. going to a christmas party after this am i gonna want to go to a christmas party after this it's the holiday season So get ready.
This centers around 45-year-old Bruce Jeffrey Pardo.
Bruce was the son of an engineer. When he grew up, he immediately showed that he was pretty adept at mathematics and he really liked it.
He himself became an engineer of sorts, which sounds like a nice story.
It's not. don't be fooled he graduated from john h francis polytechnic high school in sun valley california And then he went on to Cal State Northridge and there he got a degree in computer science.
So, so far, so good. He's on the right path, right?
Always starts out that way. Always does.
He was a super like center of attention guy.
He was big, he was goofy, he was loud He was a Bundy.
Yeah, exactly. Like, he wasn't like a super withdrawn guy like Jeffrey Dahmer or anything like that or like an Ed Kemper-y kind of guy.
He was... He was out there. He liked being the center of attention and in fact at his Cal State graduation according to a Los Angeles Times article that I wrote about that i wrote i wrote for the last time whoa yeah crazy surprise no i've read it um he carried a life-size inflatable doll at his graduation why because he just thought it would be funny like he was one of those guys no a jokester just the big old jokester sounds like like a frat guy he kind of yeah he's like he seems like the typical frat i'm not hating on frat guys i think you're funny don't add us sometimes but he was like the typical frat guy but then add on like that he also was uh a murderer so so there's that differentiates him from the typical frat guy yeah i don't know typical murderous frat man no he was also and I'm not saying this differentiates him I'm just adding this he was very he was brilliant he was very brilliant many frat guys are brilliant Let's be clear.
Yeah, I'm not saying that differentiates him.
So he ended up getting a job at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Flintridge, I believe it is.
Sorry if I'm saying it all wrong. But he became a software engineer, obviously.
That makes sense after you get a degree in computer science.
He basically just kind of like fucked around at work, like he was not a good employee.
He used his brilliance and knowledge to hack the system there to look at his co-workers' salaries.
Oh, that's not allowed. That's not allowed and that's not cool, dude.
Why do you care what everybody else is making?
Well, it's like, fuck you. You don't need to see what I'm making.
Like, damn. Just ask me. I'll tell you. Yeah, like, what a dick.
When he was there, he met a woman named Delilah.
I could not find her last name because apparently now she is off. live in her life she's married she's she doesn't want to be associated with this you know what i'm gonna say hey there delilah no oh You know that radio station at night?
No. And she's like, oh my god. It's like this lady.
I was thinking that. Hey there, Delilah.
What's it like in New York? city people already fucking hate us but i'm gonna explain delilah is like a radio show around here and she's like it's normally like late night and you like right into her and she's like Tell me all your love woes.
If you want to send somebody a song, call in and it's Delilah. oh i love it i also i also loved what you just did there she got like a solid like saucy body roll ash closed her eyes she got all into that because i love that it's so comforting i appreciated it anyways well this is not the same delilah Bombas makes the most comfortable socks, underwear, and t-shirts.
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They met in 1988. He was 24 years old. They got engaged.
She ended up paying for the wedding and the honeymoon. why from her safety a fucking software person yeah but he was kind of just like a bum and an asshole so he just didn't pay for anything and he was like yeah you can just empty your savings to pay for this and she was like i'd be like i don't want to marry you yeah apparently you know love is love love is blind So June 17th, 1989 was the wedding day.
They all waited and he never showed. Wait.
He stood her up at the altar. No. After she emptied her savings to pay for this.
Oh, it gets better. weeks went by no one heard from him until he showed up one day and it came out that he withdrew The last $3,000 from Delilah's bank account.
He took her money? Yup. And he went on a Palm Springs vacation and just blew it all.
What a fucking asshole. No wonder she's, like, bi.
Right? There's a lot more that she would want to disassociate from this dude that we'll hear about.
Did she leave him, like, right then? Well, they never got married.
He never showed up to the wedding. So that was it.
So that was that. So this is just to show what a fucking asshole this dude is.
In 2001, he met a woman named Elena Lucano.
Shut up, Elena. Yeah. That's your name.
It's not spelled the same. Oh. It's like Elena.
Not Elena. But kind of the same. They moved in together.
They had a 13-month-old boy together. On New Year's the child fell into the backyard swimming pool. while bruce was supposed to be watching him and he wasn't watching him bruce was watching tv Makes sense.
First of all, I mean, shout out to all the parents out there or really anybody who's watched a child, especially a 13 month old.
First of all, they're probably just starting to walk.
So they're toddling around, falling into shit and picking stuff up off the floor, putting it into their mouth.
You literally have to follow that kid everywhere they go.
Yeah, you need eyes like a hawk. For him to think that he can watch any television is absurd.
Elena's kids are like three and a half and we can't get through like a quarter of a show.
I have not, John and I literally took, I think two years to get through Stranger Things.
We have yet to watch the second season of Mindhunter because when the hell are we going to sit down and watch it?
Right. And it's like for him to sit there and watch TV long enough for this kid to wander outside, first of all.
How did your kid even get outside? The fact that that happened is insane.
And then for him to fall into the swimming pool and you're just sitting there watching TV.
What are you doing? Right. Like, you have one job, dude.
Right. Like, I'm sorry. Is the kid okay?
Well, he lived. So he's watching television.
He was apparently, when they got home, he was a fucking mess and he was like cradling the child in his arms.
Like, he was a mess. um he ended up sitting by his bedside in the hospital for like a week or two well yeah good he sat vigil with him like really like stayed by his side But then when it was revealed that he would have brain damage and be a paraplegic, Bruce split.
Are you kidding me? Nope. So you did that and then you're going to abandon your kid?
Yeah. And leave it up to the mother to take care.
Obviously, the mother, I mean, you're a mother of a child.
You're That would not be like, we'll leave this for you.
You know what I mean? But you know. You did this.
Like, and also it's like, you are his father.
Great. This is supposed to be no matter what you do.
You are here. You take care of your child, and especially when you're responsible for it.
Never mind that. So again, I mean, not cool.
Piece of shit, absolute piece of shit. That poor little babe.
I know. And I mean, I guess he's thriving with his mother.
You know what I mean? Well, that's good.
But that sucks. Still. That sucks. Because of your dad's fucking negligence.
Yeah and that kid is like suffering because of him.
It sucks. In 2008 Sylvia Pardo was 43 years old she lived in covino california just outside of los angeles and worked as an administrative assistant She was one of five children, and her siblings were James, Charles, Alicia, and Leticia. she ended up meeting bruce and marrying him why unfortunately why um Now, Sylvia, around 1988, she was married to her first husband and he was killed in a car accident.
The couple did share two children together and a few years later she met a man named George Orza and they eventually were married as well.
And in 2002, they had a daughter together.
So she had three kids. Okay. They divorced soon after and he moved to Oklahoma.
So she lost one husband to a car accident and then divorced.
In 2004 is when Sylvia met Bruce Pardo. which was just shitty he was an aerospace software technician at the time um they met through one of her brother-in-laws i'm not sure which one They married on January 29, 2006, and almost immediately, shit went bad.
Of course, because he's a deadbeat. Shit went real bad almost immediately.
He's a degenerate. He was super shifty. He was just an asshole.
They fought about money a lot because he wanted a separate like secret bank account away from her.
Go fuck yourself. Yeah. So money became a real source of contention for them like right away.
And the straw that broke the camel's back, however, was when Sylvia found out he was cheating.
Nope, that Bruce had fathered a son from a previous relationship.
And abandoned him. And that the son had brain damage and Bruce had abandoned the poor child.
But what she found out... was that he was still claiming this child as a tax write-off.
Are you kidding me? No, he had not seen, spoken, or paid for this child at all.
But he was claiming him on his taxes. But he was claiming him as a tax write-off.
And when she found this out, she was like, you're gross.
Yeah, that's horrific. And from what I saw... she found out from his own mother.
Because Bruce Pardo's own mother was on Sylvia's side through all of this.
Yeah, good. Yeah. So she was like, you're a fucking monster.
And she was right. They separated on March 7th, 2008. um sylvia apparently asked can i stay in the house for a little longer because she had a kindergartner right like a four-year-old and she was like can she finish kindergarten here and then i'll move out right i don't want to rip her out of kindergarten Well, when she was out one day, he threw all her shit onto the driveway and was like, yeah, douchebag.
Like, cool. Typical Bruce fashion. Typical fucking Bruce.
You know what I'm saying? Fucking Bruce.
Rest in distress because, spoiler alert, he's fucking dead.
Bye, Bruce. She was like, don't break me down.
Don't break me down, Bruce. um so yeah so he's a piece of shit june 2008 he was ordered to pay sylvia 1785 a month in spousal support um his first payment didn't go through like the check bounced makes sense cool not shocked and then the second one he just stopped payment on it So he just never paid her any money.
Not shocked. Now, one month after that, he was fired from his job at ITT Electronic Systems for billing fraudulent hours. according to another article yeah he's just an asshole in every sense of the word in June he bought a Sig Sauer I don't know if I'm saying this right Sig Sauer 9mm handgun I have absolutely no idea I apologize if I'm saying that wrong.
Anybody who knows guns, let me know. You tried.
And you know what? Every time I've been like, I don't know this about guns, someone help me.
We always get like really helpful people that are like, I like guns and let me tell you about it.
Yeah. And I appreciate that. Thank you. Because I don't know a lot about them.
So thanks, guys. In August, September, October and November, he bought four more of those guns.
So he really liked them. And he only spaced them out like that because the law says you need to wait 30 days between purchasing.
This kind of gun. On September 8th, he ordered the Santa Claus outfit that will come up soon.
Yep, he ordered a Santa Claus outfit. Okay.
He rented it from Jerry's Costumes, and it was a custom Santa Claus outfit.
And he asked for extra space in it. You're going to see why.
I don't wanna. Yeah, it's not awesome. And when I say I don't wanna, that doesn't mean stop telling the story. because everybody gets upset and they say that they're like, Ash doesn't want to know the details.
Why does she have a true crime podcast? I do want to know the details.
It's a figure of speech. damn it god damn it galopsis sorry guys we've had a pretty salty week We've got a lot of shit this week.
I don't know why. It must be like the moon or something.
I don't know. Is Mercury in retrograde? Oh, wait, side note, the moon was fucking straight up orange the other night and I meant to text you.
Maybe that's why. Yeah. That orange mood is casting a salty light on us.
So then he ended up visiting his friend, I believe in September or October.
He visited a friend in Iowa, a friend from high school, and he used their different laws in Iowa They have different laws on like how many bullets you can purchase at a time or how many bullets in a magazine you can have.
He used the difference in those laws from California. to buy 16 handgun magazines that held 18 bullets each.
So on December 18th, one week before Christmas, Sylvia and Bruce appeared in court before a judge.
The divorce was finalized. Okay. So this was a week before Christmas.
Okay. That's sad. What a shitty time to get divorced.
And it's really shitty because this is really just awful timing altogether.
He ended up getting to keep the house. She got the couple's dog, which was a brown Akita named Saki.
Saki. He was ordered to pay her an additional $10,000.
Shit. Yeah. I mean, she deserved it, man.
I mean, they like order you to do that shit, but then like, I feel like nine out of ten times you never see it.
I know that shit is always, like, it always gets held up and, like, with tape and shit.
Like, it sounds good, but then you're like, yeah, when am I gonna fucking get $10,000 from Bruce?
When is Bruce gonna pay that up? So Sylvia moved in with her parents for the time being at 1129 East Nolcrest Drive in West Covina.
Aw, Sylvia, you're having a time, girl. I'm so sorry.
This gets bad, guys, just to let you know.
December 24th, 2008. Mm-hmm. is where shit goes down.
Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve. Sylvia's family gathered at the home of her parents.
They did this every single year. 80 year old joseph and 70 year old alicia ortega stop the couple was married 53 years stop They moved here from Mexico and they started an industrial painting company together called Industrial Powder Coating Inc.
Oh my god, cuties. They had amassed a pretty great life together through just hard work.
Yeah. Like, they were like the American dream.
Yes. When Joseph, and they said, I read this in an article that when Joseph spotted Alicia in their hometown in Mexico, he was 23 years old and she was 17.
He said he saw her and told his sister, I'm gonna marry that girl.
I'm gonna leave because I have to go cry.
Isn't it just like, that's so beautiful.
I love love. 53 years together. I hate to tell you this is not going to end well.
Well, just 53, I'm assuming. Yeah, just 53.
And it, like, hurts my heart. Because they seem like such...
This family, like the Ortega family, I was reading about them.
Like, there's some articles I'll post, too. that go through like each family member and just like go through their life and stuff all the great shit they did and it just seemed like they were just this like wonderful loving family they really did Like they loved each other.
It just like really bummed me out. The town of Agde in France is famous for sun, sand, sea and sex.
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Neighbors who had joined the family for other events and holidays because they were like all about having their neighbors over.
Yes, the more the merrier. They said they were the sweetest, most loving family.
Like everyone said that. In fact, a neighbor named Mitzi Avery I want to be named Mitzi.
I know, that's a great name. She lived next door to them and she told the Los Angeles Times, quote, When you walked into a room, every one of the Ortega kids would get up and give you a kiss and a hug.
They were the most respectful family I'd ever known.
It all started with Joe and Alicia. I love that.
So they just like taught their kids to be respectful.
They just loved each other. Yes. Fuck, man.
Fuck Bruce Pardo. Fuck him, man. He's a degenerate.
Oh, I'm so angry. This case makes me so angry.
So this Christmas Eve 2008, there were about 25 people attending the annual holiday shindigs. at their house a big a big soiree big soiree so later someone um sometime after 11 p.m Some of the family, including Joseph and Alicia Ortega, were playing a game of Texas Hold'em. with some of their family, mainly like the siblings.
It was after they enjoyed a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner together, a nice party.
According to the LA Times a lot of the grandchildren were kind of in the back of the house playing video games.
Cute. And 17 year old Michael Ortega was upstairs on the computer.
Mm-hmm. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door.
And they were like, come on in, it's Christmas.
Well, this is when shit gets real, so just everybody hang on to your... booties trigger warning yeah kind of um trigger warning for death it's coming So when eight-year-old Katrina Yusufovsky peeked out the window, she saw none other than Santa Claus.
No. Standing at the front door and he was carrying a giant nicely wrapped Christmas present.
Mm-hmm. obviously she's psyched as any fucking eight-year-old would be to see santa on christmas eve right standing outside their door with a christmas present right So she ran to the door like any child would and flung it open yelling Santa.
Oh my God. Now everybody. It's bad, because no sooner had she opened the door and saw Santa Claus standing there, Santa Claus shot her square in the face with a semi-automatic handgun.
Yep. Oh. shot this eight-year-old girl square in the face with a handgun.
Now I'm going to tell you right now. The girl lives.
Okay, okay, okay. I just want to put that out there.
Because I was like, I want to leave now.
Yeah, I just want to let everybody know.
She lived, but like, holy shit. Shot an eight-year-old in the face?
What kind of fucking mom? Dressed as Santa, nevertheless?
Dressed as Santa. What the fuck is wrong with you? with you exactly now hearing the commotion and the gunshot the home just erupted into panic and chaos obviously Family members were diving under tables, under chairs.
They were running everywhere. They were grabbing each other, trying to save each other.
I mean, it's just pandemonium. Now, most of the adults were in the front of the home getting ready to leave.
And as I said, most of the kids were in the back playing video games.
This allowed most of the kids to escape.
Okay, that's good. That's good, but it's like... But still.
Now, during the chaos, apparently Charles Ortega, Sylvia's brother, recognized who Santa was.
He yelled, it's Bruce, and was promptly shot and killed.
Oh my god. Yes. Bruce Pardo was literally massacring his ex-wife's entire family along with her.
Like, why though? Now, family members who survived said they saw Charles and James Ortega, Sylvia's brothers, try to take Bruce down even after they had been shot. my god they they said they got up pouring blood and tried to save their family god but they were obviously overtaken but they tried till the very end to like take this guy down for their family Now Joseph, Alicia, their three daughters, including Sylvia, hid under the dining room table and were executed and killed where they hid.
Oh my god. The only survivor of the immediate family was the sister, Leticia.
Oh, my God. Now, Leticia noticed that her daughter, Katrina, who was shot in the face... Mm-hmm. was stumbling out of the home at one point after being shot in the fucking face by santa claus so she ran out after her right Now, according to the LA Times, relatives that were present said that they thought that they saw Bruce Pardo, oh this is so awful, lift up Katrina before putting her down and shooting her in the face. relatives literally said they he came in they said some of them said i saw him pick her up and then put her down and shoot her in the face Like, why?
Like, pick her up like Santa would pick you up.
Yeah. So this girl was like, Santa! And then he puts her down and boom, shoots her in the face.
What the fuck? Again, she lives, but like, holy shit.
Now, after the shooting spree, Bruce Pardo was not done.
Okay. Because he, remember, he had a gift in his hand, a wrapped gift.
What was that? Well, he unwrapped his gift.
And this is the one that made Katrina think that he had to be the real Santa because he was showing up with a gift.
The wrapped gift was a homemade flamethrower.
Wait, what? Yup. homemade literally Bruce Pardo put together a homemade flamethrower what even is that it's like it's exactly what no i know what it is and it's got like what the it had like two tanks on it like fuel tanks and everything that he could literally just spray basically spray fire yeah And he unwrapped this gift and immediately started engulfing the entire home in flames.
What the f- like, why? Yup. Now this is- this sucks.
Michael Ortega, the 17-year-old upstairs on the computer, he was killed in the fire.
Oh, my God. He wasn't shot. He was killed in the fire.
Oh, my God. Mm-hmm. after being shot in the fucking face.
She also told the dispatcher at 911, quote, his name is Bruce Pardo.
She said she could still hear him shooting and she ended the call by saying please I don't know who else is alive.
Oh I just got chills. and this is her whole family right like this is her whole family in the end nine were dead oh my god he killed nine people in this family either by gunshot or by the fire right Now, Bruce Pardo had brought with him four semi-automatic weapons and the homemade flamethrower.
Right. Is that why he asked for extra room in the suit to carry the guns?
Because he carried all his shit in there.
Now, some of the victims were shot execution style.
Oh, my God. Like he literally stood over these people hiding from him and shot them execution style.
Why? While they're cowering away from him.
Right. This is so beyond psychotic. It's unreal.
Now, the bodies were so badly burned that cause of death was hard to determine, like whether they were shot or died. from the fire um so they ended up having to use dental records not just for cause of death but for id purposes oh that's so sad Which is always really fucked.
Whenever they have to resort to dental records, it's like, woof.
Pardo's ex-wife, Sylvia Pardo, was 43. Her parents, Joseph Ortega, 80, and his wife, Alicia, 70. her two brothers james ortega 52 and charles ortega 50 their wives teresa 51 and sherry 45
Sylvia Pardo's sister, Alicia Ortiz, 46, and her son, Michael Ortiz, 17, were all killed.
God. A 16-year-old that was there was shot in the back but survived.
A 20 year old jumped from a second story window and broke her ankle and eight year old Katrina survived but was obviously badly injured yeah they said that um she might have actually saved herself at the last second because she turned her head at the last second and he shot her basically through the jaw oh ow yeah
It took 80 firefighters 1.5 hours to get the resulting fire under control.
Holy shit. They said that flames were shooting up like 50 feet in the air.
Because was he probably still in there, like, shooting flames?
It was just a massive fire. I mean, that flamethrower must have just caused the perfect atmosphere for an insane bonfire to happen.
Now, Bruce had no priors. Right. And no previous record.
Right. So this is just an insane jump. Why was he like so...
Like, why was it this time? I have no idea.
It's like because there's conflicting things where some friends said that he was really upset over the divorce and then some said he seemed fine. right but all the time people did say that he would say like she's taking me to the cleaners I think it was money.
Yeah. I think he just didn't want to pay her any money.
Probably. Now, after the massacre, Bruce changed out of his Santa suit.
He changed. Oh, he left. Oh, yeah, he left.
He put the flamethrower into his rental car because he rented a car a week before this because he knew what he was going to do.
He drove 30 to 40 miles to the San Fernando Valley where his brother lived.
He went inside his brother's home, sat on his couch, and killed himself on his brother's couch with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.
He still had his wedding ring on, according to an L.A.
Times article. Los Angeles County Coroner's Lieutenant Fred Corral. said there was an exit wound at the top of his head, which meant that he probably put the gun in his mouth to kill himself.
Right. There's something so cryptic about that.
It really, it's so like, blah. Like, it just gives me the willies.
It was around 3.30 a.m. that his brother showed up to his own home and found his brother dead on his couch.
Just go fuck over one more fucking person, Bruce.
Yes, exactly. um he so the brother called the police after discovering him obviously now It's widely thought that he did not intend to kill himself initially, and I don't think he did either.
Now, he had booked a plane ticket on Canadian Airlines to connect in Iowa to go visit his friend again.
And he had told his friend, the one that he...
Went to visit earlier and got the bullets when he was there.
He told him he was going to come visit him.
So he was ready to leave. And he bought the plane ticket.
Another reason it seems like he was likely forced into taking his own life is that later the autopsy showed that he had third degree burns on his arms and sides and some of his legs.
So he knew he wasn't going to get away with it.
Yeah. And so it was so bad that the pants, the Santa pants, had actually melted into his skin.
Good. So I think this is why he killed himself because like escaping at that point is just not going to happen.
He just wasn't going to. Because you're going to have to go to a doctor now.
Like you have third degree burns. You might not even live.
Right. So they also found trace amounts of cocaine in his system, indicating that he had probably taken some the evening of the massacre, which makes a little sense.
They also found $17,000 in cash wrapped around his leg with saran wrap. oh he was definitely not he was gonna run yeah um investigators did you say 17 000 17 000 in cash Investigators found his rental car dumped a ways away from his brother's home and it had all the evidence in it.
The flamethrower, the guns, the 200 pounds of ammo.
The costume, like the Santa costume, food, water, maps of Mexico and the U.S., a laptop, a desktop computer. yeah he definitely wasn't it had extra clothing i mean he was ready to leave the costume when they found this car was rigged however So it was rigged to ignite when you moved it.
It would ignite and then it would trigger the 200 pounds of ammunition to explode.
Oh, and it did. His whole car lit on fire, but no one was hurt because they detonated it like safely.
Right. But so this is what I think. He got the burns.
He initially he was ready to get the fuck out of there.
Now he realizes he can't. Yeah. So now he's like, well, I'm going to kill some more people on my way out because why the fuck not?
So he sets that shit up now. Jesus. Because he's an engineer.
He's a smart guy. He knows, unfortunately, if you set it up so that it ignites this ammunition, he probably had that as like a backup plan.
And he was like, well, got to do it now.
Luckily, he didn't kill anybody with that explosion because they were smart and detonated it.
Thank God. At his home, they found four shotguns, more ammo, and more gas containers that he used to fuel the flamethrower.
It was later discovered that he was planning to kill his ex-wife Sylvia's divorce attorney.
Oh, geez. He was planning to go to his house afterwards and kill him.
Oh my god. Yep. And he was also planning to kill his own mother, Nancy Windsor.
Oh my god. That evening, he was going to go from their house to her because she was invited to the Christmas Eve party at the Ortega's.
He thought she was going to be there. Yeah.
He thought she was going to be there, but she felt ill that evening and she decided not to go.
Bruce resented her because she sympathized with Sylvia.
In fact, apparently he was telling people at the divorce proceedings she would sit with Sylvia.
Good. What a bad bitch. Right. She's just like, you're a piece of shit.
I know it. So obviously this was planned for a long time.
I mean, he built the flamethrower, he bought the guns months ahead of time.
Like, why are you buying that many guns? and it's like you had to build that flamethrower that you could just put that together in like a night right no you gotta get he ordered that santa suit pretty early So it's like, what the fuck were you trying to do?
Nothing good. No, nothing good. 13 kids lost their parents on that Christmas Eve.
Oh my god, that's so sad. 13 kids. They're going to remember Christmas Eve as the night they became essentially orphans.
Oh my God. Can you imagine? No. Katrina was fucking traumatized.
Can you imagine? Like, you're eight years old and Christmas is the most amazing thing.
Like... You would be triggered every time you saw Santa Claus.
Yeah. Which is like Christmas time. Right.
You would see, like, perfect example of this wonderful whimsical thing that happened that would be something that would trigger severe PTSD in this poor child.
We were driving down the street this morning and I had my twins in the backseat.
We drove down the center of our town and I don't know what the fuck was going on, but...
We have, like, a very, like, magical center of town.
It's like a jaunty area. Yeah, it's very Christmas.
It's very, like, Hallmark movie. um and on the side of the road on the sidewalk was a dude in full santa gear a very good santa too Full Santa gear, walking down the road, just nothing in his hands, just walking down the road.
Nobody else was around. It was so weird.
And I just looked out the window and I was like, guys. it's santa and the girls like lost their shit so cute like they were freaking out when we got home They were like, I can't believe I just saw Santa.
And I was like, yeah, guys, because he went behind a car afterwards and just kind of like disappeared.
And I was like, oh, he's gone. He just wanted to show you that he was here.
It was magic. He was here and he just wanted to put you on the nice list.
That's all. And they were, like, so happy.
And then I'm thinking about poor Katrina.
If she was in the backseat. Oh my God. So. fucking santa walking down the street that poor girl would lose her damn mind probably yeah And it's like something that was so awesome for my kids or like any other kid that hasn't gone through something like that. is literally a nightmare yeah this poor kid and it's like something that's so innocent well not even just for the rest of your life like you can never enjoy christmas no And it's like her mother, Letitia, said she had to constantly remind her that that man was not the real Santa Claus.
Oh my God, my heart. because this poor girl's probably sitting there being like santa claus did that to me like she doesn't understand you're eight years old That this is a disgruntled ex-uncle of hers.
You know what I mean? But her mother had to be like, that was not Santa.
Like, I promise you that was not. Can you imagine?
No. Having to like, well, and then you're probably fucking terrified on Christmas Eve that Santa's coming to your house.
Exactly. The rest of ever. Because because no matter what, it's like she's going to be like, no, he's coming.
Like they're going to celebrate Christmas again.
I would assume. I don't know. Maybe they stopped.
I don't know. But it seems like her mother, Leticia, tried to keep it going and keep it a happy thing.
But I'm sure that's probably terrifying every single year.
You're thinking like, what if it's not Santa?
My whole family was annihilated on this day, however many years ago, every year.
I can't even. Your parents, all your siblings, your nephew.
And all those kids that got left without parents.
13 kids. I wonder how old everyone was. 13 kids.
And not only lost to their parents, but were there when they're... And in the most brutal... horrific just tragic way you can imagine and by somebody that you looked at as an uncle at one point you know what i mean like that's that's so beyond So yeah, I just I can't imagine how triggering Santa and Christmas is in general now.
Yeah. I mean, you got shot in the face on Christmas. by Santa, who then massacres your whole family and lights the crime scene ablaze with a fucking homemade flamethrower.
The homemade flamethrower is like... What the fuck, dude?
Just beyond. Yeah. Beyond. The whole... I mean, the whole fucking thing is like, what the fuck, dude?
But... For him to use his fucking bat brain this way.
For that evil. What a waste. man like what a waste of a mind it just I hate when I see this shit when like serial killers or killers are brilliant you're like what a fucking waste because you could do some awesome shit in the world and you've chosen to be this evil son of a bitch and it really sucks that he killed himself It really sucks that he killed himself because I want to, I would love to see this guy fucking rotting away.
Yep. And the fact that he shot an eight year old in the face, the second that dude stepped in a prison, he would be like enemy number one.
And I would love it. Yeah. Now pretty close after this whole massacre, Bruce Pardo's mother, Nancy, said she talked to the remaining members of the Ortega family And they all assured her that they loved her and didn't blame her.
Because I can't imagine. You would probably be like, you definitely blame me.
You know what I mean? And I wouldn't blame you.
Right. And actually, she told the LA Times, quote, I will say this to you.
It would have been so easy for that family to hate me.
And Sal was just so wonderful. He said, we love you and your family.
I love them so much and it's very hard this has happened.
Like, she really felt, like, connected to this family and it sucks.
Like, that sucks. Yeah, and, like, her kid did that.
It's like... how do you even wrap your brain around that as a mother?
Yeah. He fucked up so many people. And it's...
I guess Joseph had a sister that was, I mean, he was 80 years old, so an elderly sister.
Yeah. who he often visited like a lot all the time.
And he always, when he left, would tell the family, her family, take good care of my sister.
Stop it. Like, he was just, this is that kind of family.
I guess they didn't tell her. I don't know if they ever told her, like, what actually happened.
Oh, I don't blame them. They were like, she'll die.
Like, we cannot tell her what happened. Oh, my God.
The amount of lives he ruined with this, it's...
It just rippled so far out in like this awful spider web of just shit.
But then it just goes to show how amazing this Ortega family was.
That his own mother... was like so concerned that they'd hate her and that they didn't blame her yeah because they were clearly an amazing family because like she said it would have been so easy for them to blame her and i mean i can't say i wouldn't have some kind of like resentment for bringing this guy into the world you know what i mean but it's not her fault no Now Katrina, just as a little update, is thriving today.
Oh, that's good. She actively fights against gun violence.
The family also writes letters to other survivors of gun violence, like the Newtown massacre.
They wrote to all those, the family members.
Yeah. and they tell them to stay strong and they're just like we're here as a shoulder to cry on and that like it gets better like i promise I know I did too.
I got the chili willies. So that is the Covina Christmas Eve Massacre.
Wow. And Bruce Pardo is dead. I hope he's getting tortured wherever he is.
Yeah, same. Yeah. I hope they just, like, constantly, like, throw a flamethrower at him.
Right? I hope he's just getting blasted with a flamethrower wherever he is.
Like, every four seconds. yeah and just constantly putting another santa suit on him and then just melting it into his flesh yeah Then just putting another Santa suit on and he's just got like 500 layers of Santa suit just melted into his flesh right now.
Yes. That's what I want for him. Correct.
So I believe it's happening and I feel good about it.
Me too. I'm stoked. I love it. So happy holidays.
That was horrible. I know it's awful so yeah that was awful and Let's hope that everybody has a beautiful holiday that is absolutely nothing like this.
Yeah, I hope our holiday is absolutely nothing like that.
Yeah, and maybe we'll be posting a few of our holiday shenanigans on Morbid.
But I'm going to be doing my mini episode this week as well.
These are going to be back-to-back episodes like two days in a row because...
This has been a tough holiday season. We've been doing that a lot lately anyways.
We have. I think we're going to change up the schedule a bit, but we'll figure it out.
Stay tuned. Yeah, because I'm going to be handing over the editing, so... Hey-o!
Yay! But... My mini is also going to be holiday themed, but not in a good way.
So stay tuned for that. So exciting. Yay.
Well, if you do want to see our holiday shenanigans, you can follow us on Instagram at Morbid Podcast.
Hit us up on Twitter. Amorbid Podcast. Join our Facebook group.
Morbid colon a true crime podcast, and it's great in there, despite what some negative Nancy's have to say.
Mm. Send us a Gmail. Morbidpodcast at gmail.com.
Preferably not complaining. Yeah, don't do it.
I'm kind of getting sick of that. Check out our website. morbidpodcast.com.
Do we have anything else? No, I don't think so.
Cool. We hope you keep listening. And we hope you keep it weird.
Definitely not doing one for this. No. I mean, don't keep it anywhere near this weird.
Don't. Just don't even think of it. This isn't weird.
This is fucked. Bye. Bye. Thank you. If you like Morbid, you can listen early and ad free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.
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