The former CEO of Anheuser-Busch, the maker of Budweiser beer, has said he is devastated and on the brink of a severe depression after his girlfriend was found dead at his sprawling estate. August Busch IV, whose family founded the brewery in the mid-1800s, was speaking for the first time since the body of 27-year-old Adrienne Martin was found at his St Louis residence. Result of an autopsy are not expected for up to a month. “It’s the saddest thing I’ve ever dealt with,” he said. “I went to the kitchen to make her a special shake,” he said. “I came back and tried to wake her up, and I couldn’t. I checked for a pulse, and then I called Mike (Jung) and he checked, too.” Mr Busch, 46, did not know what caused Martin’s death but speculated it could be tied to medication she was taking. He also disputed a contention that there was a 42-minute gap between the time Martin was found unresponsive and a house employee, Michael Jung, called paramedics. “Whatever time it was, I stayed there with her, and he immediately called 911,” he said. “It was 30 seconds. We were panicky. To me, she felt kind of warm.”
Speaking to the St Louis Post-Dispatch he admitted he has struggled with depression since the sale of Anheuser-Busch to Belgian brewers InBev more than two years ago. InBev purchased the company with the approval of Busch’s father, former CEO August Busch III, and the board of directors. “I would have given up my life to save the company,” said Mr Busch IV, who took over as chief executive upon his father’s retirement in 2006. “But I couldn’t do anything.” He told the Post-Dispatch he had been in rehabilitation early last year for depression and “my other issues.” In 1983, Mr Busch, then a 20-year-old University of Arizona student, left a bar in Arizona with a 22-year-old woman. His black Corvette crashed, and the woman was killed. Mr Busch was found hours later at his home, and he suffered a fractured skull and claimed he had amnesia. After a seven-month investigation, authorities declined to press charges, citing a lack of evidence. Two years later, Mr Busch was acquitted by a jury in St. Louis on assault charges resulting from a police chase that ended with an officer shooting out a tire on his Mercedes-Benz. – Telegraph
