Joyce pieman a churchgoing National, by Paul Garvey.
The man behind yesterday’s extraordinary public assault on Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce is a senior member of at least two Perth-based religious organisations.
Mr Joyce, who has drawn controversy over his public advocacy for marriage equality, had a cream pie shoved in his face at a business breakfast in Perth yesterday by a man confirmed by The Australian as Tony Overheu, a one-time Nationals candidate and a senior member of the Church of Christ in the southern Perth suburb of Willetton.
The 67-year-old farmer says his motivation for the pie attack on Mr Joyce was that he is appalled by corporations that engage in “social engineering’’.
Mr Overheu is also listed as the national director of the WA branch of the Full Gospel Business Men’s Fellowship International. …
His strong religious ties suggest that yesterday’s attack may have been linked to Mr Joyce’s vigorous support for marriage equality.
In March, Immigration Minister Peter Dutton criticised Mr Joyce for using Qantas’s brand to campaign for same-sex marriage, arguing that the companies wading into the debate should “stick to their knitting”. …
Late yesterday Mr Overheu, 67, was charged with giving false details to police. It’s understood that Mr Joyce intends to press further charges, although he has not yet provided a statement to police.
hat-tip Stephen Neil
