Oba Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, has been sentenced to 56 months in a United States federal prison for orchestrating a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fraud. The sentencing was handed down by U.S. District Judge Christopher A. Boyko in Ohio, following Oloyede’s guilty plea to multiple charges including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, engaging in monetary transactions with criminally derived property, and filing false tax returns.
Oloyede, who holds dual Nigerian and U.S. citizenship and resides in Medina, Ohio, was found to have led a scheme exploiting emergency loan programs under the CARES Act. Between April 2020 and February 2022, he and his co-conspirator Edward Oluwasanmi submitted 38 fraudulent applications for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) funds. The applications were made using false business information, including entities operated by Oloyede and Oluwasanmi, as well as the names of Oloyede’s tax clients—without their knowledge.
In exchange for securing these loans, Oloyede collected kickbacks ranging from 15 to 20 percent of the disbursed funds, which he failed to report to the IRS. The funds were used for personal enrichment, including the purchase of land, construction of a home, and acquisition of a luxury vehicle. He was also ordered to pay $4.4 million in restitution, forfeit his Medina residence, and surrender an additional $96,000 in seized assets. Upon release, he will serve three years of supervised probation.
The case was part of a broader investigation by the U.S. Pandemic Response Accountability Committee Fraud Task Force, involving the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigations, and the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General. His co-defendant, Oluwasanmi, was sentenced earlier to 27 months in prison and ordered to repay over $1.2 million.
The Osun State government is reportedly considering deposing Oba Oloyede in light of the conviction, pending further review of the legal and traditional implications.
