A former police officer in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, received a suspended death sentence after being found guilty of intentional homicide on Tuesday.

The Shenzhen Intermediate People's Court gave Li Caikun a two-year suspended death sentence, Wuhan Evening News reported.

On July 1 last year, Li falsely claimed a robbery had taken place and got a street vendor to file a police report. On the pretext of the false claim, Li accosted the victim, surnamed Ban, and fatally shot him.

Li killed Ban, the court found, because of an argument during a previous encounter at Li's police station in the Longgang district.

Li, born in 1984, was held by police on July 2, 2012.