Chennai : A fast track Chennai court on Friday convicted a retired Army officer in the murder case of 13-year-old boy Dilshan and awarded him life imprisonment.

About nine months after the incident, the court announced its judgement holding Lt Colonel (retired) Kandasamy Ramaraj guilty of killing the boy on an Army complex in the city.

Dilshan was shot dead on July 3, 2011. The victim, along with his friends, had jumped the fence of the defence residential area to pluck almonds. He was shot at by the retired Army officer for trespassing.

After preliminary investigations by the Chennai Police, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa had ordered a probe by the Crime Branch of Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) of the state police.

Ramaraj was arrested on charge of the murder on July 10 and a chargesheet was filed against him about a month later. The trial concluded with 55 prosecution witnesses, including four minors and defence officials, providing evidence.