Refugee shooting confuses Twin Falls officers • Scott yanks sponsorship of doping cyclists • Parking fees, tickets up at U of I • Iowa man asks friend in Idaho to help off his wife • Panhandle pill thief on the loose • Author finds body from 65-year-old crash

Refugee shooting confuses Twin Falls officers

The Times-News has been following a bizarre shooting in which a transgender Iranian refugee has been charged in Twin Falls with killing his male housemate, also a refugee from Iran.

Ehsan Velayati Kababian, 29, allegedly got into a parked car, and his roommate, Majid Kolestani, 42, banged on the window. The driver's door opened and Kolestani shot Kababian in the head. The vehicle crashed into a house on Fifth Avenue East and Kolestani was dead when police arrived.

A thirteen-year-old neighbor got a scare when a bullet discharged during the incident came through her ceiling, narrowly missing her bed.

Kolestani is a man, authorities confirmed Wednesday, but he looks like a woman, neighbors said. Police also originally referred to him as a "she."

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Scott yanks sponsorship of doping cyclists

Scott USA announced on Tuesday that it will not be a title sponsor of the Scott-American Beef cycling team for the 2009 season.

Adrian Montgomery, Scott USA's marketing and public relations director for the bike division, said the decision was made after the team was not allowed to compete in the Vuelta a España because of members’ involvement in a doping scandal.

The Mtn. Express says it was "yet another blow in an embattled 2008 season for the pro tour team," which was tossed from the Tour de France this year after team rider Riccardo Ricco tested positive for a banned substance.

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Parking fees, tickets up at U of I

Students returning to the University of Idaho have noticed an increase in the price of parking permits and citations being written as well as lots that have been converted to different permits.

Also, student newspaper the Argonaut says no parking, illegal use, display of lost or stolen permits, not parking in a motorcycle space, no parking 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. and vehicle impound citations have increased on campus.

"Increases in anything, whether it be gas prices, food or parking, nobody is going to be happy," said Rebecca Couch, information specialist for parking services.

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Iowa man asks friend in Idaho to help off his wife

A Cedar Rapids, Iowa, man is pleading guilty to asking a buddy in Idaho to help him knock off his wife.

Daniel Dostart allegedly called his friend, who was not identified, on July 18, saying he was angry because his ex-wife had custody of their children and would receive almost half his military pension until her death. He asked his friend if he knew "anyone who could make her disappear."

The friend contacted authorities, and Dostart was taken into custody.

Dostart said in phone conversations with his friend that he was willing to pay $5,000 to have his wife killed, with a 20 percent bonus if the murder took place in early August when he was on vacation, according to court documents.

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Panhandle pill thief on the loose

A man robbed a Coeur d'Alene Safeway pharmacy of OxyContin pills yesterday, and detectives are thinking the crime could be connected to other recent painkiller holdups.

A Rite Aid in Hayden was hit with a similar robbery Monday.

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Author finds body from 65-year-old crash

Authorities said Monday that a body found on a remote Sierra Nevada mountainside likely is that of a flier who died in a military plane crash 65 years ago.

Leo Mustonen, along with three other army cadets, including an Idahoan, was aboard an AT-7 aircraft that crashed on a training mission in November 1942 due to a blizzard.

Also on the flight was John Mortensen of Moscow.

The flight was one of several dozen air crashes during World War II training missions. Many of those aircraft are still missing in the 400-mile long Sierra.

Mustonen's body was discovered by an author writing a book about the crash.