A man has been sentenced to life in prison for the fatal shooting of an Indian international student in Toronto, with a court rejecting his claim that he was not criminally responsible due to mental illness.

Justice Jane Kelly of the Ontario Superior Court found Richard Edwin guilty of two counts of first-degree murder in a ruling delivered Monday, according to details reported by Global News.

The case included the killing of 21-year-old Kartik Vasudev, a student at Seneca College who had moved to Canada from Ghaziabad, India, in January 2022 to study management.

Court heard that on April 7, 2022, Vasudev was walking near Sherbourne Station toward Bloor Street East when Edwin passed him, turned back and shot him multiple times in the back.

While the defence acknowledged Edwin carried out the shooting, it argued he should be found not criminally responsible due to schizophrenia, claiming he could not distinguish right from wrong at the time.

The court accepted that Edwin was suffering from schizophrenia during the incident but rejected the not criminally responsible claim, instead convicting him and imposing a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Vasudev’s father, Jitesh Vasudev, said the family had remained in Canada to attend the final court proceedings.

“After four years of legal battle, we have finally received justice,” he said.

Vasudev’s death drew widespread attention in 2022, highlighting concerns about public safety and violence in Toronto. His body was later returned to India for last rites.

The case also involved a second victim in a separate killing on April 9, 2022, for which Edwin was also convicted of first-degree murder.