KEY POINTS
- Oba Oloyede sentenced for COVID-19 relief fraud.
- Scheme exploited SBA loans during the pandemic.
- Restitution exceeds $4.4 million after conviction.
A Nigerian king has been sentenced to more than four years in jail by a U.S. federal court for his part in a conspiracy that stole millions of dollars from COVID-19 relief funds.
Judge Christopher A. Boyko in Ohio sentenced Oba Joseph Oloyede, 62, the Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, Nigeria, to 56 months in jail on August 26. The dual U.S.-Nigerian citizen was also told to pay back more than $4.4 million. To give up his residence in Medina, Ohio, and give up about $100,000 that investigators had taken.
Conviction for COVID-19 relief fraud
Prosecutors said Oloyede worked with Ohio resident Edward Oluwasanmi to take advantage of CARES Act emergency lending programs. They were meant to help small companies stay open during the pandemic.
The two of them also sent in dozens of fake applications for Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) between 2020 and 2022. Investigators concluded that Oloyede was the only one who was responsible for 38 fake applications that got him loans and cash advances worth more than $4.2 million.
Kickbacks and also personal spending
Court documents further showed that Oloyede allegedly filed fake applications for customers. While he kept 15 to 20 percent of their reimbursements as bribes, which he didn’t tell the IRS about. The money was used to buy real estate, build things, and buy a fancy car, according to the prosecutors.
Oluwasanmi, 62, from Willoughby, Ohio, was sentenced to 27 months in prison in July and told to pay back $1.2 million.
The fraud was also looked into by federal officials
The Department of Transportation’s Office of Inspector General, the FBI’s Cleveland Division, and also the IRS-Criminal Investigations looked into the plan. The case was brought by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Edward D. Brydle and James L. Morford.
In conclusion after he gets out of prison, Oloyede will have to spend three years on supervised release.
