Connor Gaydos, a man connected to an apparent parody project to relaunch the energy company Enron and become its new CEO, was hit in the face with a pie this week as he was entering a building in New York City.
The incident was caught on video and went viral on social media Thursday. The clip shows Gaydos exiting an SUV shortly before an older man slams the pie into his face as two bodyguards intervene.
The bizarre incident mirrored one from more than two decades earlier, when a California woman tossed a pie into the face of Enron’s then-CEO Jeffrey Schilling.
Earlier this month, a group announced the scandal-plagued Texas company was returning exactly 23 years after filing for bankruptcy amid massive fraud.
“With a bold new vision, Enron will leverage cutting-edge technology, human ingenuity, and the spirit of adaptation to address the critical challenges of energy, sustainability, accessibility and affordability,” the company said in a press release that raised questions about its legitimacy.
The announcement was reportedly joined by billboards in the Houston area, a full-page ad in the Houston Chronicle and a video promoting the company’s comeback.
An investigation conducted by Houston station KHOU turned up a disclaimer on the company’s website that read, “The information on the website is First Amendment-protected parody, represents performance art and is for entertainment purposes only.”
Many have speculated the company’s reemergence is merely a publicity stunt promoting cryptocurrency.