By Ademuyiwa Balikis
The Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Oba Joseph Olugbenga Oloyede, has been sentenced to more than four years in prison in the United States for his role in a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fraud.
The monarch was sentenced on Tuesday, August 26, 2025, by Judge Christopher A. Boyko of the U.S District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. He received a 56 month prison term, followed by three years of supervised release. The court also ordered him to pay $4,408,543 in restitution to the U.S government.
According to court documents, Oloyede and his co-defendant, Edward Oluwasanmi, conspired between April 2020 and February 2022 to defraud the U.S. government by submitting fraudulent loan applications under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) scheme. These programs were introduced to help small businesses survive the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The U.S Department of Justice confirmed that Oloyede also agreed to forfeit his Medina, Ohio residence, along with $96,006.89 seized by investigators as proceeds of the fraud.
In April 2025, Oloyede pleaded guilty to multiple counts, including conspiracy, wire fraud, money laundering, and falsifying tax returns. During the sentencing process, his attorneys admitted his guilt but urged the court to consider the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on his decisions, stating: “COVID-19 affected all of us differently, COVID-19 is not an excuse. But it is a factor.”
Oloyede’s co-defendant, Pastor Edward Oluwasanmi, was earlier sentenced in July 2025 to 27 months in prison, along with supervised release and forfeiture of a commercial property and other assets.
The sentencing marks the conclusion of a case that drew wide attention both in Nigeria and the United States, given Oloyede’s status as a traditional ruler in Osun State and his role as a U.S citizen.
