A man dressed as Santa Claus knocked on the door of a home before massacring the whole family. Joseph 'Papa Joe' Ortega had been playing a late-night game of Texas Hold 'Em with his wife of 53 years and children at their home after a Christmas Eve dinner.
Their grandchildren had been playing video games and hanging out near the pool in the back garden of the home in Covina, California, on Christmas Eve 2008 - the night of the brutal killings.As reported by the Mirror, 17-year-old grandson, Michael, was sitting upstairs at his computer when there was a knock at the door.
The young girl happily cried "Santa Claus! Santa Claus!" upon hearing the knocking and she opened the door to find a man dressed as Santa, complete with an enormous present - which is said to have contained a homemade flamethrower.Just seconds later, the man pulled two handguns from his festive trousers and shot the young girl, Katrina Uzefpolsky, in the face.
Two of her uncles fell to the ground, wounded, as the Ortegas and three of their daughters, including the gunman's ex-wife, dived under the dining table for cover.But it proved to be a futile attempt to escape the gunman.
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