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Qantas CEO Alan Joyce Cops Cream Pie In Face At Business Forum

The motivations of the alleged attacker are unclear.
It is unclear why the alleged attacker smashed a pie into Alan Joyce's face.
Clodagh Kilcoyne / Reuters
It is unclear why the alleged attacker smashed a pie into Alan Joyce's face.

Qantas CEO Alan Joyce has had a cream pie pushed into his face while addressing a business breakfast in Perth.

Joyce was the keynote speaker at a West Business Leadership Matters event on Tuesday morning held at the Hyatt Regency. The event is supported by the West Australian newspaper.

The newspaper reported Joyce had been on the stage for about three minutes when a man holding a pie "forcefully pushed" it into his face, before "calmly" walking off the stage.

The man appeared to be aged in his 60s or 70s and was wearing a suit.

Joyce appeared shocked, the West Australian reported, before saying, "I don't know what that was about".

He then excused himself and went to clean himself up, before reappearing on stage to finish his speech without his jacket, according to the ABC.

The man who attacked the QANTAS chief was surrounded by security staff in the Hyatt foyer, where he sat quietly not saying anything.

Joyce joked with the crowd of around 500 people about the incident.

"Now, if there are any more pies can you get it over with now?" he said as he returned to finish his speech.

Joyce continued to take a jovial approach towards the incident in a press conference with reporters following the incident, telling reporters "I didn't have a chance to taste it. I think it was mostly on my glasses."

"I think my issue is I need a good dry cleaner before I leave Perth, so if you have one, please recommend it to me."

WA Police said they were called to the hotel on Adelaide Terrace, East Perth this morning regarding an "assault incident".

A spokeswoman said one person was in custody.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has called the incident a "disgrace", tweeting that the "person should be ashamed".

More to come

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