Mysuru: A City Court has sentenced a man to life imprisonment besides imposing a penalty of Rs. 5,000 on him for brutally killing his friend following a dispute over sharing of labour wages.

Vijay alias Viji is the one who has been sentenced. Labourer couple Mary Regina and her husband Raja stayed at a shed adjoining a cement godown in Vande Mataram Nagar. The couple, after finishing work on Aug. 8, 2013, were engaged in a conversation in front of their shed, when Vijay visited the house and picked up a quarrel over sharing of wages.

Following heated exchanges, Vijay, in a fit of rage, pushed down Raja and brutally smashed his head with a brick killing him on the spot. Vijay had also threatened Raja’s wife Mary Regina if she reported the matter.

The jurisdictional Mandi Police, who registered a case in this regard, arrested Vijay who had gone absconding and filed charge-sheet against him.

The fourth Additional District and Sessions Court Judge N. Krishnaiah, who heard the case, convicted Vijay of the charges and sentenced him to life imprisonment. Public Prosecutor H.M. Raghu Kumar argued on behalf of the State.