AP

Covina, California, Dec 26: A man dressed as Santa Claus opened fire at a Christmas Eve party in a suburban Los Angeles home that subsequently caught fire, leaving three people dead, police said on Thursday.

Police were seeking a person of interest, 45-year-old Bruce Jeffrey Pardo. Pardo, described by police as armed and dangerous, is the estranged husband of a person who may have been at the party.

"He was going through some type of marital problems, and we believe that this residence is a relative's residence," Lt. Pat Buchanan said.

The gunman arrived at the party in Covina late yesterday and immediately opened fire with a handgun, Buchanan said. Witnesses told police that the man took off the Santa suit and left the scene in street clothes. Buchanan says three bodies were found after the fire was put out. He could not say how the fire started or how the three people died.

Buchanan also said police expected to name Pardo as a suspect soon. Buchanan says three other people were injured. A woman in her 20s and an 8-year-old girl had gunshot wounds that were not life-threatening, and a third person had a broken ankle.

Covina is a quiet suburb 25 miles east of Los Angeles.

"This neighborhood is really quiet," said Jeffrey Barrientos, who lives half a block from the house that burned. Barrientos said the neighborhood's residents were mostly retirees and elderly people.