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A video began circulating on social media yesterday (28th) claiming that “a well-known Kottu shop owner died in a vehicle accident early this morning, suspected to be suicide.”
We undertook to verify the truth of this claim.
Social Media Posts:
The video presented as footage of the accident is shown below.
Another video circulating in this manner can be seen here.
This video was also published on TikTok under the same theme.
https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSCDJbsX3
The responses to these posts similarly indicate that, based on the description of “a well-known Kottu shop owner,” many people have assumed it refers to the owner of Mr. Kottu.
Fact-Check
Mainstream media reports do not exist
A video showing Viraj Wickramanayake, owner of the “Mr. Kottu” business chain, brutally assaulting an employee went viral in recent days, sparking intense backlash against him on social media. Had he genuinely died in such an accident amid this controversy, mainstream media would certainly have given the story significant coverage yet no such report appeared. Nevertheless, since these posts were formatted to resemble “Ada Derana” news under the name “Aba Derana,” many people assumed it was a genuine news report.
Misuse of an old video
We submitted frames from this video to a reverse image search and found it was originally posted on TikTok by the handle “journeywithvlogs” on 30 March 2025, described as “Part 2” of an accident that occurred in Kottawa.
Part 1 was published as follows.
Accordingly, this is confirmed to be an old video, and it is also confirmed to show an accident involving a motorcycle colliding with a vehicle.
We also checked Police media releases for 30 March 2025 the date the accident was claimed to have occurred and the days surrounding it, but found no report of such a road accident or any fatality.
Official Police statement
We made inquiries with the Kottawa Police Station and the Police Media Division regarding this claim. Police confirmed that no such fatal accident has been reported in the Kottawa police area this morning or recently. They also emphasised that neither the owner of “Mr. Kottu” nor any other prominent individual has died in a road accident.
The Maharagama Police Station has launched a special investigation into Viraj Wickramanayake’s brutal and inhumane assault on a young employee.
Police Media Spokesperson, Assistant Superintendent of Police F.U. Wootler, has spoken about this matter.
This investigation began after a series of CCTV footage showing the owner brutally assaulting an employee at the restaurant began circulating on social media. Following intense public backlash and pressure, Police intervened directly.
According to the data recorded in the CCTV footage, the assault occurred on 5 May.
However, the incident remained concealed as the employee was intimidated into silence. Once the video became public, the Criminal Investigation Division acted immediately. Maharagama Police are continuing further investigations to ensure the victim’s safety and to gather evidence for legal action against the suspected businessman.
We invite you to explore our fact-finding efforts.
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Conclusion
Our investigation establishes that reports claiming “Mr. Kottu” owner Viraj Wickramanayake died in a vehicle accident are completely false and fabricated. No information confirms his death, and the video presented as evidence of his death actually shows footage from a separate, unrelated accident that occurred approximately a year earlier.
Title: No. The owner of Mr. Kottu did not die in a vehicle accident!
Written By: Pavithra Sandamali
Result: False
