OSOGBO: Ademola Adeleke, governor of Osun State, has approved the deposition of Joseph Oloyede as the Apetumodu of Ipetumodu following his conviction in the United States on tax fraud and money laundering charges.
The decision was contained in a statement issued by the governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, who said the action followed the receipt of a Certified True Copy of the court judgment from Ohio, where the monarch was convicted.
According to the statement, the Osun State Executive Council had earlier directed the Ministry of Local Government to obtain the official court documents from the US, insisting that government action could not be based solely on reports circulating on social media.
Rasheed explained that the deposition order, signed by Adeleke on May 7, 2026, was taken to maintain peace, public order and good governance, as well as to protect the dignity and integrity of the traditional institution.
The government stated that the monarch’s guilty plea and conviction in a US court brought the institution of Obaship and the royal stool of Apetumodu into disrepute, making his removal necessary.
Oba Oloyede was sentenced to 56 months imprisonment by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio on August 26, 2025, after being found guilty of wire fraud, filing false tax returns and engaging in monetary transactions involving criminally derived property.
With the deposition, the stool of Apetumodu of Ipetumodu has been declared vacant, and the state government said due process would begin for the selection and installation of a new traditional ruler.
Governor Adeleke also appealed to residents and indigenes of Ipetumodu to remain peaceful and law-abiding as the process to appoint a new monarch commences.
