US Jails Osun Monarch, Oba Oloyede, Over $4.2m COVID-19 Relief Fraud

The Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Oba Joseph Olugbenga Oloyede, has been sentenced to 56 months in prison by a United States court for his role in a multimillion-dollar COVID-19 relief fund scam.

Delivering judgment on Tuesday, Judge Christopher Boyko of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio also ordered the monarch to pay more than $4.4 million in restitution and forfeit assets linked to the fraud.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Oloyede pleaded guilty to six counts, including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, money laundering, and filing false tax returns.

Investigators said that between April 2020 and February 2022, the monarch and his associate, 62-year-old Edward Oluwasanmi, exploited federal pandemic support schemes—the Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL)—by filing dozens of bogus applications using shell companies and the identities of unsuspecting tax clients.

The court found that Oloyede personally pocketed about $1.7 million, while Oluwasanmi obtained $1.2 million. The monarch also collected up to 20 percent kickbacks from fraudulent loans taken in his clients’ names. Proceeds were used to acquire land, build a house, and purchase a luxury car.

He has since forfeited his Medina, Ohio home and nearly $100,000 in seized funds.

Oluwasanmi was earlier sentenced in July 2024 to 27 months in prison, a $15,000 fine, and over $1.2 million in restitution.

The FBI, IRS–Criminal Investigations, and the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Inspector General uncovered the fraud, which involved at least 38 fake loan applications, under the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee’s Fraud Task Force.