ADVERTISEMENT

VG Siddhartha Death: Forensic Report Corroborates Suicide Theory, Says Mangaluru Police

According to sources in the Mangaluru police, water was found in Siddhartha’s lungs and his death was due to drowning.

VG Siddhartha is the founder of Coffee Day Enterprises, which runs the Cafe Coffee Day chain of coffee shops in India. (Photographer: Karen Dias/Bloomberg)
VG Siddhartha is the founder of Coffee Day Enterprises, which runs the Cafe Coffee Day chain of coffee shops in India. (Photographer: Karen Dias/Bloomberg)

The forensic report of Cafe Coffee Day founder VG Siddhartha’s death corroborates the suicide theory, Mangaluru Police Commissioner PS Harsha said on Monday.

According to sources in the Mangaluru police, water was found in Siddhartha's lungs and his death was due to drowning.

"We have received the FSL (Forensic Science Laboratory) report. It corroborates the suicide theory," said Harsha.

Siddhartha, whose Coffee Day Enterprises Ltd. runs the CCD coffee shops, was pulled out dead from a river on July 31, two days after he went missing. He purportedly left behind an unverified letter which showed he was under “tremendous pressure” from lenders. He was cremated at his estate in Chikmagalur, Karnataka, on July 31.

On Sunday, Siddhartha's father 95-year-old Gangaiah Hegde died due to age-related illnesses at Gopala Gowda Shanthaveri Hospital, hospital authorities confirmed. Siddhartha had a few days before his death visited his father, who was in a coma.