The FBI has arrested Nigerian Pastor Edward Abiodun Oluwasanmi for allegedly collaborating with Oba Joseph Oloyede, an Osun monarch, to defraud the U.S. government of $4.2 million in COVID-19 relief funds.
The funds, intended to support struggling businesses during the pandemic, were reportedly obtained through forged documents and diverted for personal use, violating U.S. federal laws, according to Peoples Gazette.
Oluwasanmi allegedly used his companies—Dayspring Property Incorporated, Dayspring Holdings, and Dayspring Transportation—to secure millions in fraudulent loans. He was indicted on a 13-count fraud charge and arrested in Cleveland in April before being released on a $20,000 bail. His financial transactions include a wire transfer of $221,880 in September 2020 to purchase a commercial property in Ohio.
On October 26, 2021, Oluwasanmi reportedly transferred $1 million in COVID-19 relief funds to a brokerage account belonging to Dayspring Transportation. Prosecutors have seized around $620,000 from him and are pursuing the forfeiture of additional assets tied to fraudulent proceeds.
On April 5, 2024, the FBI seized $599,250 from Oluwasanmi’s Dayspring Transportation account at Fidelity Investments and another $20,000 from his Dayspring Property account at Key Bank. Both his U.S. and Nigerian passports were confiscated to ensure compliance with trial proceedings. His U.S. passport lists him as Edward Olanrewaju Abiodun Oluwasanmi. If he fails to appear in court, he faces immediate re-arrest.
On Monday, Sahara Reporters confirmed that Osun monarch Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu, reported missing in March 2024, was found in FBI custody. The monarch, also a U.S. citizen, faces a 13-count fraud indictment in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio.
Oloyede was arrested on May 4, 2024, following a warrant issued for his arrest. The FBI accuses him of orchestrating a fraudulent scheme through his six registered companies, obtaining loans intended for struggling businesses during the pandemic. These programs, such as the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL), required applicants to submit tax records, wage statements, and other financial documents to prove eligibility.
Oloyede allegedly falsified these documents and misused the funds for personal expenses, violating federal law. FBI records show that in June 2020 alone, he secured over $100,000 in loans for four of his companies: Available Tax Services, Available Tutors, Available Financial, and Available Transportation. On October 7, 2021, he received a $500,000 loan for JO&A, followed by another $500,000 two days later for Available Transportation.
Investigations suggest that Oloyede, an accountant by profession, also assisted co-conspirators in executing similar fraud schemes, charging them a percentage of the loan amounts upon disbursement. “Oloyede assisted co-conspirators and confederate borrowers who submitted and caused to be submitted PPP and EIDL loan applications containing false information,” the indictment stated.
On April 3, 2024, a grand jury in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio indicted Oloyede and Oluwasanmi on charges of conspiracy, wire fraud, and money laundering. Prosecutors allege that from April 2020 to February 2022, the duo fraudulently obtained over $4.2 million in SBA-guaranteed relief funds. Oloyede reportedly pocketed $1.7 million for his businesses and another $1.3 million through falsified applications for co-conspirators.
