CHENNAI: The Principal District and Sessions Court, Tiruvallur, on Tuesday sentenced a 27-year-old man to life imprisonment for murdering a priest inside a Pentecostal church six years ago.

Principal District and Sessions Judge J Juliet Pushpa awarded life imprisonment to the accused, C Moses, and imposed a fine of Rs 10,000.

The victim, J Enos of Pattabiram, who retired from the Combat Vehicles Research and Development Establishment (CVRDE), Avadi, was serving as a priest at a Pentecostal church in Vallalar Nagar. He was found dead in the church by a worker in March 2020.

After investigations, the Pattabiram police arrested Moses, a helper at the church, who went missing after the incident. Probe had revealed that he had a pending murder case against him in Andhra Pradesh.

According to the prosecution, he was upset with Moses as he had reprimanded him in front of other staff.