The Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Oba Joseph Oloyede, has been sentenced to more than four years in prison in United States.
Oloyede, 62, who holds a dual U.S citizenship and resided in Medina, Ohio, was on August 26 handed 56 months in prison by U.S District Judge Christopher A. Boyko.
According to to the U.S Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio in a statement on Tuesday, the monarch, was also ordered to serve three years of supervised release after imprisonment and pay $4, 408,543.38 in restriction.
“He also forfeited his Medina home on Foote Road, which he had acquired with proceeds of the scheme, and additional $96,006.89 in fraud proceeds investigators had seized”, the statement read.
The U.S Attorney Office said Oloyede led a conspiracy loan programmes created for struggling businesses.
“From about April 2020 to February 2022, Oloyede and his conspirator, Edward Oluwasanmi, conspired to submit fraudulent application’s for loans that were made available through the U.S Small Business Association (SBA) under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act”, the statement added.
In April, the duo pleaded guilty to wire fraud and tax fraud charges linked to the pandemic relief scam that siphoned over $4.2m in federal stimulus funds.
The court was told that Oloyede, who also worked as tax preparer, operated five businesses and one non-profit, while Oluwasanmi owned an additional three business entities.
“Both defendants used their businesses to submit loan application using false information.
“They obtained approximately $1.2m in SBA funds for Oluwasanmi’s entities and $1.7 million for Oloyede’s entities.
The fund were used of their personal gain, including land acquisition, home construction and purchase of luxury vehicle.
-9News Nigeria.
