Facing sentencing for his role in a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fraud case, an Osun monarch, Oba Joseph Oloyede, has appealed to a U.S. court for leniency.
In a sentencing memorandum filed on Tuesday, August 19, his lawyers argued that the pandemic drove the Apetu of Ipetumodu to commit the crime, claiming it was an uncharacteristic lapse in judgment for the previously law-abiding monarch.
“COVID-19 affected all of us differently. Conduct that we would never expect from ourselves or others sometimes manifested itself as we encountered a completely different society.
“COVID-19 is not an excuse, but it is a factor,” his counsel stated in the document.
Persecondnews had reported that the former banker and adjunct professor, Oba Joseph Oloyede, 62, was arrested by the FBI in May 2024 in Cleveland after his sudden disappearance from Nigeria two months prior.
His absence from major local festivals in his hometown of Ipetumodu had sparked rumors before his arrest.
Investigations revealed that Oba Oloyede allegedly used six companies to file fraudulent loan applications for the U.S. Paycheck Protection Programme and Economic Injury Disaster Loan scheme.
He then laundered some of the money through personal and business accounts.
In addition to the arrest, American authorities seized a property in Medina County and about $96,000 from one of his company’s bank accounts.
Although his lawyers admitted his guilt, they maintained that the fraud was a sharp departure from his history of service, stressing that he had shown deep remorse.
The monarch, a father of six and foster parent to several other children, was installed as the Apetu of Ipetumodu in July 2019 after returning from the United States where he had lived since the late 1990s.
Though granted bail after surrendering his Nigerian and American passports, Oba Joseph Oloyede has remained under strict restrictions.
His sentencing, originally set for July, was postponed until August 26, 2025, so the court could review his sealed medical records.
His prolonged absence has left the people of Ipetumodu without an active traditional ruler, leading to concerns about a leadership vacuum and the succession process.
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