The Osun State Government has said it will obtain the Certified True Copy of the judgment delivered by a United States court that sentenced the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede, to prison over a multimillion-dollar COVID-19 relief fund fraud.
Oloyede, 62, who holds dual citizenship of Nigeria and the U.S., was sentenced on Tuesday, August 26, by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko to 56 months in prison. He was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release and pay \$4,408,543.38 in restitution. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, the monarch forfeited his Medina, Ohio residence, purchased with proceeds of the fraud, alongside an additional \$96,006.89 traced to the scheme.
The traditional ruler was convicted for leading a conspiracy that exploited emergency loan programmes created to support small businesses during the COVID-19 pandemic. Court documents showed that between April 2020 and February 2022, Oloyede, a tax preparer and business owner, conspired with 62-year-old Edward Oluwasanmi of Willoughby, Ohio, to submit fraudulent applications for COVID-19 relief loans. The fraudulent claims targeted the Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) scheme under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, defrauding the U.S. government of over \$4.2 million.
Oloyede later pleaded guilty to six counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, engaging in monetary transactions with criminally derived property, and making false tax returns.
Speaking on Wednesday, the Osun State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Dosu Babatunde, said the government would not act on unverified reports until the official court record is obtained.
“While it may be true that the monarch has been convicted and jailed, there is no official record with us. We cannot rely on Facebook posts and stories to justify such a serious matter. We will direct that the Certified True Copy of the judgment be obtained. After studying it, the government will then decide on the next steps,” Babatunde stated.
In Ipetumodu, calm prevailed on Wednesday, though residents discussed the development quietly. Chiefs in the town were said to have met at the palace over the monarch’s fate.
The most senior chief, Sunday Adedeji, assured that the community would remain peaceful. “May God never allow chaos in our community. By the grace of God, He will be in total and complete control. There is no crisis in the town, and we do not envisage any,” he said.
