The traditional ruler of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Oba Joseph Oloyede, has been sentenced to 56 months in a U.S. federal prison after being found guilty of orchestrating a multi-million-dollar COVID-19 relief fraud scheme. The verdict, delivered on August 26, 2025, by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko, has stunned Nigerians at home and abroad.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio revealed that the 62-year-old monarch, who holds dual Nigerian and American citizenship and resides in Medina, Ohio, will also serve three years of supervised release after completing his prison term. He was further ordered to pay $4.4 million in restitution, while forfeiting his Medina home and nearly $100,000 in seized fraud proceeds.
Investigators disclosed that Oba Oloyede, alongside co-conspirator Edward Oluwasanmi, manipulated pandemic loan programs created to support struggling businesses. Between April 2020 and February 2022, the duo filed dozens of fraudulent applications under the U.S. government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) schemes introduced through the CARES Act.
Court filings revealed that Oloyede operated five businesses and one nonprofit, while Oluwasanmi controlled three other entities. By falsifying payroll data, employee counts, and tax records, they secured over $2.9 million in SBA funds, siphoning taxpayer money intended for legitimate businesses. Oloyede also prepared and submitted fraudulent applications for clients, taking 15–20% kickbacks from their loans without reporting the illicit income to the IRS.
In April 2025, both men pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax fraud charges, with prosecutors emphasizing that the conspiracy drained over $4.2 million from federal coffers. According to investigators, Oloyede used part of the funds to acquire his Ohio residence, which has now been seized by U.S. authorities.
The sentencing adds Oloyede’s name to a growing list of Nigerian-Americans prosecuted for pandemic-related scams in the United States. Since 2020, U.S. courts have convicted hundreds worldwide for exploiting COVID-19 relief programs, but the conviction of a sitting monarch has intensified scrutiny. Nigerians have expressed shock on social media, describing the development as a disgrace to the traditional institution.
Legal analysts warn that the conviction could also trigger debates in Osun State about whether Oba Oloyede should retain his royal stool while serving a criminal sentence abroad. For now, his fate as monarch remains uncertain, but his conviction stands as one of the most high-profile cases linking royalty to international financial fraud.
