By Sarah McPhee
A former Sydney police officer who repeatedly bashed a woman, once knocking her unconscious, made her scared to report the assaults because of his position and convinced her to give police a fake name for him, court documents reveal.
Jonathan Charles Bettles, who was previously a senior constable attached to a specialist command within the NSW Police Force, pleaded guilty in December to 14 charges after more than two years of violence against the woman, who cannot be identified.
Jonathan Charles Bettles, who was a senior constable, is no longer a member of the NSW Police Force.Credit: Facebook
The offences include assault occasioning actual bodily harm, common assault, destroying and damaging property, and intending to pervert the course of justice.
“The offender had always made the victim feel like he knew about the law, and that all police would be like him, and would believe him over her,” according to the agreed facts, obtained by this masthead from Burwood Local Court on Wednesday.
“The offender would always use the fact he was a police officer against her.”
During a holiday to the United States for “Police Week”, Bettles pushed the woman over during an argument, causing her to hit her face on a wall-mounted heater.
“She [the victim] was scared to be around him, and felt that it did not make sense, given the offender could otherwise be a nice, decent person, and was a police officer,” the facts state.
During other assaults, Bettles poured a can of Coca-Cola over the woman, hit her in the face forcing her earring to rip out, and caused $800-$900 of damage to gyprock after pushing her into a wall.
He also ruined her $400 make-up kit by putting it in the bathroom sink and turning the tap on, stomped on her foot and broke her toe, and punched her in the car, leaving her “frightened”.
“She considered calling the police, but felt scared to do so, as the offender always made the victim feel that he ‘understood the system’ better than she did,” the facts state.
Bettles, 37, told the woman he would “ruin” her business if she complained to the police, and the victim was also worried police would not assist her as Bettles was friends with officers at the local station.
After one incident, when Bettles punched the woman in the head, she went to the doctor who referred her for an MRI head scan.
“You punched me so hard in the back of it the other day … I remember my whole head go numb and tingle,” the woman said in a text to Bettles. He replied with four sad face emojis and said: “It makes me feel sick.”
On another occasion, when the woman wanted Bettles “out of her life”, she called triple zero, but he grabbed the phone from her and hung up.
As the operator kept trying to call the woman back, Bettles told her “don’t answer, they can’t do nothing”. When she eventually answered she told police “everything was fine, and not to worry”, but was informed they would either come to her home or she needed to go to the police station.
Bettles, who travelled with the victim to the police station, told her: “Just tell them some bullshit story and give them a fake name, they can’t do anything.”
Inside, the woman told police “she had an argument with a ‘John Smith’ and gave fake details”, the facts state.
Two weeks later, Bettles was “worked up and angry” and punched the woman in the face, knocking her out. When she regained consciousness, Bettles was standing over her, “panicking” and saying “get up” repeatedly.
Concerned she may need head scans, as she was dizzy, had a numb face and a headache, the woman drove herself to hospital but did not tell staff who had punched her or the circumstances.
In the weeks following that assault, Bettles spoke of wanting to get a job posting with NSW Police in the country, to which the woman said: “I’m scared to go bush … I really am.”
“What if you hit me one day, I die from it,” she said, according to the facts. The woman added: “Your hit hurt me so much … just because I don’t cry … doesn’t mean I’m not hurt.” Bettles replied: “I know.”
After another incident, which involved Bettles punching the woman in the car before she sat on a grass verge outside a unit block crying, a woman called out: “Are you OK, darl?”
The victim said to Bettles “I hope that lady calls the cops”, to which he replied, “I know this area, there’s [sic] no cameras here.”
On a separate occasion, when Bettles was trying to pull the woman out of her car, the victim saw a man she knew and screamed out “Please help me”. The man yelled at Bettles, “Leave her alone mate, what are you doing?” which prompted Bettles to slam the door and the victim was able to leave.
Bettles was arrested in September 2023. He told officers “this is a joke”, that the victim “was trying to get back at him, and owed him money”, she was “full of shit”, and described the allegations as “bullshit”.
Bettles had been suspended without pay. On Wednesday, a police spokesperson said Bettles was “no longer a member of the NSW Police Force” and was removed in June 2024 under a Section 181D order, which is a power of Commissioner Karen Webb if she does not have confidence in an officer’s suitability to continue in the force.
Nine other charges against Bettles, including allegations of sexual assault and intimidation, have been withdrawn. Bettles, who is on bail involving home detention, will face a sentence hearing in May.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732).
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