Osun Monarch Pleads For Leniency In US Court After Admitting $4.2m COVID-19 Relief Fraud

A United States court has received a new plea for leniency from the Apetu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede, who admitted to his role in a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fraud that drew outrage in both Nigeria and the U.S.

In a sentencing memorandum filed on Tuesday, August 19, 2025, before Judge Christopher Boyko of the Northern District of Ohio, the monarch’s legal team acknowledged his guilt but urged the court to view the pandemic as a mitigating factor.

“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. Particularly when, as did Joseph, one had to worry that pre-existing health problems could now become fatal if the virus was contracted,” his lawyers stated in the filing obtained by Peoples Gazette.

Oba Oloyede, 62, was arrested by the FBI in May 2024 after disappearing from Nigeria two months earlier, missing major traditional festivals in Ipetumodu such as Odun Egungun and Odun Edi. Prosecutors accused him of using six companies to submit fraudulent loan applications under the U.S. Paycheck Protection Programme and Economic Injury Disaster Loan schemes.

Court records show that the monarch, who emigrated to the U.S. in the late 1990s and later earned a doctorate, maintained a spotless record for decades as an adjunct professor and banker before his installation as Apetu in July 2019. His lawyers called the fraud a sharp break from an otherwise exemplary life, stressing that he has expressed remorse and accepted full responsibility.

Following his arrest, U.S. authorities alleged that part of the illicit funds were laundered through personal and business accounts. The government seized a Medina County property in Ohio along with over $96,000 from one of his company’s accounts. He was later granted bail after surrendering both his U.S. and Nigerian passports but remains under strict supervision pending judgment.

The monarch, a father of six and foster parent to other children, is scheduled for sentencing on August 26, 2025, after the court delayed an earlier hearing to review his sealed medical records.

Meanwhile, his absence has left Ipetumodu without an active ruler, fueling concerns over succession and the leadership vacuum caused by his legal troubles.