Woodside Man Accused of Murdering Wife for Insurance Money

A Woodside man will soon stand trial for allegedly murdering his wife for the insurance money.

Pooroushasb "Peter" Parineh, 65, who worked as a real estate developer in Woodside, is accused of shooting his wife in the head multiple times in the bedroom of their Foxfire Drive mansion on April 13, 2010 "for financial gain," the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office said.

The District Attorney's Office asserts that Parineh killed his wife because he was "in financial ruin," with the Foxfire mansion facing foreclosure, and having "no liquidity and enormous debt."

The District Attorney's Office said Parineh tried to make her shooting death look like a suicide, but that investigators believe Parineh is the one who fired the gun, killing her, in hopes of collecting on the "large life insurance policy" he had in her name.

Parineh's trial was scheduled to begin next week on Feb. 25, but on Monday when Parineh appeared in court with his defense attorney, Dek Ketchum, the date was postponed.

The District Attorney's Office said Ketchum requested the postponement in order to allow authorities to "conduct further scientific testing" - reportedly, retesting of the gunshot residue tests authorities performed at the time of the crime.

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