•Governor Ademola Adeleke and Oba Joseph Oloyede
The Osun State governor, Ademola Adeleke today deposed Apetu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede in Ife North Local Government following his conviction in the United States of America on tax fraud and money laundering charges.
Recall that Oba Oloyede, a dual citizen of Nigeria and the United States, was arrested in May 2024 during a visit to the US in connection with the fraud involving COVID-19 support funds.
He was subsequently sentenced to 56 months’ imprisonment by a US District Judge, Christopher A. Boyko, reports The Nation.
Meanwhile, Adeleke in a statement through his spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed disclosed that the governor’s decision followed the receipt of the Certified True Copy of the Ohio court judgement which convicted the monarch.
According to the release “The Osun State Executive Council had resolved last year that the Ministry of Local Government should write the Ohio court to request for the Certified True Copy of the judgement to form the basis for the government action.
“The Council had justified the decision to contact the Ohio court on the ground that governmental decision should not be based on social media reporting alone.”
He noted that “In the Deposition Order signed by His Excellency on 7th May, 2026, the action was predicated on the need to maintain peace, order and good government as well as preserve the honour and integrity of the royal stool.
“The Deposition Order further stated that the fraudulent conduct of Oba Joseph Oloyede as found by the US court and which he pleaded guilty to and his public trial and conviction have brought the institution of Obaship and the stool of Apetumodu of Ipetumodu to disrepute and public odium, hence the resort to deposition.”
He continued: “Oba Joseph Oloyede was sentenced to 56 months imprisonment for the offenses of wire fraud, making false tax returns and engaging in monetary transactions in criminally derived property by the United States District Court in the Northern District of Ohio, United States of America on August 26, 2025.”
He stressed that “By this deposition, the stool of Apetumodu of Ipetumodu has been declared vacant while necessary process will be put in place to appoint a new Apetumodu of Ipetumodu at the appropriate time.”
He appealed to sons and daughters of Ipetumodu to remain peaceful and law abiding while the process of selecting a new king is being processed.
