A U.S. federal court has sentenced Oba Joseph Oloyede, the traditional ruler of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Nigeria, to 56 months in prison following his involvement in a large-scale COVID-19 relief fraud. Oba Oloyede, aged 62, who holds citizenship in both Nigeria and the United States and resides in Medina, Ohio, received his sentence on August 26 from Judge Christopher A. Boyko of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. In addition to his prison term, he was ordered to serve three years of supervised release, pay restitution totaling \$4,408,543.38, and forfeit both his Medina residence and \$96,006.89 found by investigators—assets determined to be acquired with fraudulent funds.

According to U.S. prosecutors, Oloyede masterminded a conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government by abusing emergency loan programs created during the COVID-19 pandemic to support struggling businesses. Between April 2020 and February 2022, he and his associate, Edward Oluwasanmi, submitted numerous fraudulent applications for loans under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL), initiatives funded by the CARES Act and managed by the Small Business Administration (SBA).

Court documents revealed that Oloyede, a tax preparer operating several businesses and a nonprofit organization, was responsible for 38 fraudulent loan applications that led to over \$4.2 million in disbursed funds. Additionally, he helped clients submit false applications and took a 15–20% cut from their proceeds, failing to report the income to tax authorities. The funds were spent on personal luxuries, including land purchases, home construction, and a luxury car.

Oluwasanmi, also 62, from Willoughby, Ohio, received a 27-month prison sentence in July and was ordered to pay over \$1.2 million in restitution. The case was jointly investigated by the FBI, the Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General, and IRS Criminal Investigations.