By Peter Omopo
Two ruling houses in Ipetumodu, Osun State — Aribile and Fagbemokun — have called on Governor Ademola Adeleke to approve the deposition of Oba Joseph Olugbenga Oloyede, the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu, following his conviction and imprisonment in the United States.
In a letter dated October 13, 2025, and addressed to the governor through the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, the ruling houses urged Adeleke to officially declare the stool vacant and begin the process of selecting a new monarch in accordance with the Chiefs Law of Osun State.
A copy of the letter, obtained by The PUNCH in Osogbo on Wednesday, stated that the monarch’s continued absence and incarceration had left the stool “under suspension for over three years,” causing “serious disruption to the age-long customs and traditions” of the town.
The ruling houses said the call for government intervention became urgent after Oba Oloyede’s conviction and 56-month prison sentence handed down by a U.S. Federal Court in Ohio for his role in a multi-million-dollar COVID-19 relief fraud scheme.
“Following his conviction and sentencing to 56 months imprisonment, along with an additional three years of supervised release in the United States of America, the need for urgent government intervention has become even more compelling,” the letter read.
The houses further urged the Osun State Government to domesticate the certified U.S. judgment within Nigeria’s legal system “to complete the administrative record in support of deposition.”
The letter, signed by 10 representatives of royal compounds under both ruling houses, detailed three key requests:
- The formal deposition of Oba Oloyede on grounds of moral and criminal misconduct.
- The declaration of the Apetumodu stool as vacant, with official notification to relevant local authorities.
- The domestication of the U.S. court judgment through the Ministry of Justice.
The signatories assured Governor Adeleke of their commitment to a peaceful and transparent succession process, pledging full cooperation with the state’s Chieftaincy Affairs Ministry and Ife North Local Government.
Investigations by The PUNCH show that Oba Oloyede’s legal troubles began after U.S. authorities indicted him and a co-defendant, Edward Oluwasanmi, for defrauding American COVID-19 relief programmes of over $4.2 million.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, Oloyede submitted multiple falsified applications for loans under the Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) schemes, including those in the names of co-conspirators.
He was eventually convicted after pleading guilty and was sentenced on August 26, 2025, by District Judge Christopher A. Boyko, who also ordered him to forfeit his property in Medina, Ohio, and pay $4.4 million in restitution.
Oluwasanmi, his co-defendant, was earlier sentenced to 27 months imprisonment in July 2025.
With the monarch now serving his sentence abroad, pressure has mounted within Ipetumodu for a resolution. The ruling houses insist that the prolonged leadership vacuum has brought “disrepute to the ancient stool” and urged Governor Adeleke to act swiftly to “restore honour to the throne.”
