Colin Bettles: Major update on Aussie CEO who was viciously bashed by thugs on work trip to the US

An Australian CEO who was left for dead after he was allegedly attacked in the US is on the road to recovery.

Colin Bettles, who worked as a media adviser to former Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack and is now the boss of the farming organisation Grain Producers Australia (GPA), was assaulted and left unconscious in San Francisco on July 4 while on a solo work trip.

His phone and wallet were stolen and he was left with a broken eye socket and serious head injuries until a passerby was able to help him.

His worried family were unable to find him for four days as he was in a medically induced coma, and Mr Bettles reportedly had no recollection of what happened that night.

On Thursday evening, Grain Producers Australia chairman Barry Large said he had spoken to Mr Bettles and that he was “doing well” as he recovers at SF General Hospital.

“We’ve had a lot of people contact us after news broke of Colin’s injuries, which shows how much respect and care people have for him,” Large said.

‘And rightly so, Colin is a wonderful person and we hope this message provides some comfort.

‘We continue to support Colin and his family during his recovery and hope he can return to Australia soon.’

However, GPA board member Andrew Weidemann said he’s not completely sure yet.

“He is out of a coma but he is still in hospital and we are waiting for a report from the neurologist to see how his recovery will go,” Mr Weidemann said. The Western Australian.

“Once we get the neurologist’s report, we’ll know when he can come back. With this head trauma, he’s still in a potentially dangerous position.”

Mr Bettles, a former journalist who later entered politics, was taken to a local hospital, but doctors were unable to identify him without any documentation.

His injuries were so severe that he was placed in an induced coma.

His partner, who works in regional Australia with limited phone coverage, only noticed something was wrong when he didn’t get on the plane to New York.

She reportedly contacted Mr Bettles’ friend of 15 years and former employer, Nationals MP McCormack, who raised the alarm with the Foreign Office and Foreign Minister Penny Wong on Monday.

US authorities then tracked Mr Bettles down to his hospital bed, where he spent five days in intensive care.

It appears that Mr. Bettles was traveling alone, but was conducting business in his capacity as CEO of GPA.

His shocked colleagues only learned of his plight after his partner raised the alarm.

Mr McCormack, who described his former co-worker and friend as a “generally good guy”, said he had “serious injuries consistent with a robbery”.

“He has a cut on the back of his head and bruising on the inside of his arms, consistent with an assault, police said,” McCormack told the newspaper.

‘The police assume that he was mugged. Because he received a blow to the forehead and fell backwards or a blow to the back of his head and fell forwards.’

On the day of the alleged attack, Mr Bettles had posted several messages on X (formerly Twitter) documenting his trip to the United States.

“A fantastic experience today, doing the 17 Mile Drive and checking out the Pebble Beach golf course and facilities #roadTrip,” he posted, accompanied by several photos of the world-famous golf course in California.

Later that day, he shared a video of self-driving taxis in San Francisco.

In a statement to ABC, San Francisco police said there were “no reports that Bettles was the victim of a crime.”

Mr Bettles began his career as a journalist, eventually working as a national rural affairs reporter in Parliament House for Fairfax from 2006 to 2018.

His area of ​​work included the agricultural sector, including agricultural representation, crop production, wheat export deregulation, supply chain and competition.

In 2016 he re-established the National Rural Press Club in Canberra and was its first president.

His tenure was praised by independent MP Bob Katter, who said he was known for his integrity and his ability to build and maintain relationships.

“I think Colin Bettles has revolutionised rural reporting in Canberra and Australia,” Katter said in 2018, when Bettles stepped down from his role.

“Colin came in and spoke at our level and in our language. Colin brought a willingness to understand the issues and to report them without fear or favor.”

After leaving journalism, Mr Bettles worked as a media advisor to former Nationals leader, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development Michael McCormack, including during the 2019 federal election campaign.

Mr Bettles comes from a dairy farming family in Western Australia and is a big cricket fan.