Osun State Government has declared the stool of the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu vacant as Oba Joseph Oloyede languishes in a U.S. prison over involvement in a multimillion-dollar fraud.

A statement by Olawale Rasheed, spokesperson for the state governor, on Monday stated that, “Governor Ademola Adeleke has approved the deposition of Oba Joseph Oloyede as the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu in Ife North Local Government following his conviction in the United States of America on tax fraud and money laundering charges.”

“By this deposition, the stool of Apetumodu of Ipetumodu has been declared vacant while necessary processes will be put in place to appoint a new Apetumodu of Ipetumodu at the appropriate time,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the governor’s decision followed the receipt of the Certified True Copy of the Ohio court judgement that convicted the monarch.

“The Deposition Order further stated that the fraudulent conduct of Oba Joseph Oloyede, as found by the U.S. court and to which he pleaded guilty, and his public trial and conviction have brought the institution of Obaship and the stool of Apetumodu of Ipetumodu into disrepute and public odium, hence the resort to deposition,” the statement stated.

This comes almost a year after Peoples Gazette reported how the monarch, who went missing in March 2024, was discovered in FBI custody facing allegations of defrauding the U.S. government of $4.2 million in COVID-19 relief funds.

A United States court eventually sentenced Mr Oloyede to five years in prison over his role in a multimillion-dollar COVID-19 relief fraud and ordered him to repay more than $4.4 million to victims.

At a sentencing held on August 26, 2025, before Judge Christopher A. Boyko of the Northern District of Ohio, Mr Oloyede was handed 56 months on each of counts one and 13 of the indictment, and 36 months on counts one and two of the supplemental information.

In addition to the custodial term, the monarch will serve three years of supervised release, pay a mandatory $400 special assessment, and forfeit assets linked to the fraud.