Crime
NIGERIAN MONARCH PLEADS FOR LENIENCY IN $4.2 MILLION COVID-19 RELIEF FRAUD CASE
The Apetu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Oloyede, has pleaded for leniency before a United States court after admitting his role in a $4.2 million COVID-19 relief fraud. In a sentencing memorandum filed on August 19, 2025, before Judge Christopher Boyko of the Northern District of Ohio, the monarch’s legal team argued that the unprecedented disruption of the coronavirus pandemic influenced his decision to commit the offense.
“COVID-19 affected all of us differently. Conduct that we would never expect from ourselves or others sometimes manifested itself as we encountered a completely different society,” his counsel said. While conceding that the pandemic was not an excuse, the defense maintained it was a major factor, particularly for the 62-year-old royal, who battled health challenges during the outbreak.
Oba Oloyede, a father of six and foster parent to several others, was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in May 2024 after vanishing from Nigeria two months earlier. His absence raised concerns in Ipetumodu, Osun State, especially after he missed major cultural festivals, including Odun Egungun and Odun Edi.
Prosecutors accused him of orchestrating a scheme in which six companies under his control filed fraudulent applications for U.S. federal relief funds under the Paycheck Protection Programme (PPP) and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) scheme. Court documents revealed that portions of the illicit proceeds were laundered through personal and corporate accounts, leading to the seizure of a Medina County property in Ohio and confiscation of over $96,000 from one of his company’s bank accounts.
Before returning to Nigeria in 2019 to ascend the throne of Ipetumodu, Oba Oloyede had built a respectable career in the United States as a banker and adjunct professor. His lawyers told the court that his involvement in the fraud was a stark deviation from his record of service, responsibility, and community leadership. They added that he had demonstrated remorse and taken full responsibility for his actions.
The monarch was granted bail after surrendering both his Nigerian and U.S. passports and has remained under strict court supervision since then. He is scheduled to be sentenced on August 26, 2025, with possible penalties ranging from a lengthy prison term to forfeiture of assets, depending on the judge’s ruling.
A Nigerian national, James Junior Aliyu, has been sentenced to 90 months (seven and a half years) in prison in the United States for his involvement in a large-scale wire fraud and money laundering scheme.
According to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Aliyu played a key role in a transnational cybercrime network that targeted business email systems and defrauded individuals and organisations of millions of dollars.
Investigations revealed that the fraud scheme involved hacking into corporate email accounts and using them to divert funds through fraudulent transactions. Authorities said the operation affected multiple victims and formed part of a broader business email compromise (BEC) conspiracy.
Aliyu was arrested in South Africa in 2022 following an international investigation involving Interpol and local law enforcement before being extradited to the United States to face trial.
The 30-year-old later pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. As part of the sentence, the court ordered him to forfeit $1.2 million and pay $2.4 million in restitution to victims.
Authorities also confirmed that Aliyu will be deported after completing his prison term.
Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested a suspected gunrunner, Kelvin Ebikeniye Dugo, in Cross River State, intercepting a cache of 850 rounds of live ammunition.
The arrest, which took place on March 16 at Ivara Esu Estate in Odukpani Local Government Area, followed credible intelligence on the suspect’s alleged plan to acquire the ammunition.
Security sources said Dugo was apprehended shortly after receiving the consignment, which had been concealed inside food items. The ammunition was reportedly supplied by another suspected gunrunner, Azenda Barnabas, also known as Jagaban, based in Aliade, Benue State.
Items recovered during the operation included 850 rounds of live ammunition and two empty AK-47 magazines.
The sources noted that the DSS has stepped up operations nationwide in a bid to dismantle gunrunning networks and curb the proliferation of illegal arms.
They added that the latest arrest underscores the agency’s ongoing commitment to tracking down and prosecuting individuals involved in arms trafficking across the country.
Crime
NDLEA Arrests 74-Year-Old Man with 11kg Cocaine at Abuja Airport, Seizes Large Drug Consignments in Nationwide Raids
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a 74-year-old man, Ikwuakalom Emeka, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja after officers discovered a large consignment of cocaine concealed in his luggage.
NDLEA operatives intercepted the suspect at the departure hall while he was attempting to board a British Airways flight to London, United Kingdom for what he claimed was a vacation.
According to NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, a search of the suspect’s luggage uncovered 11 kilograms of cocaine hidden inside food items such as ground dry pepper. The drugs were carefully wrapped in foil papers and balloons to evade detection.
Lagos Island Drug Raids
In a separate operation in Lagos, NDLEA operatives acting on credible intelligence arrested Maryam Olalowo at Ikad Hotel and Suites while she allegedly attempted to sell 89 grams of cocaine and 20 grams of Canadian Loud, a strain of cannabis.
She was reportedly with her three children, including an infant, at the time of the arrest. During interrogation, she said the drugs belonged to her husband, Ibrahim Olalowo Olatunji, who was later arrested the same day.
Investigations revealed that Olatunji had previously been arrested, convicted and sentenced to two and a half years imprisonment in 2015 for a similar offence.
Codeine and Tramadol Interceptions
NDLEA operatives also arrested Kalilou Simpara and Saidu Ibrahim at Ebetu Ero, where 68,000 pills of tramadol were recovered from a truck that was being prepared for transportation to Benin Republic.
A follow-up operation at Idumota Market led to the arrest of the alleged owner of the consignment, Nnamdi Cyprian. NDLEA officers also recovered a parcel containing 1,000 tablets of tramadol (250mg) that had already been prepared for waybill delivery.
In another raid at the same market on March 13, operatives arrested Nwanosike Kelvin and recovered 47,500 ampoules of pentazocine injection from his shop.
Other Arrests Across Nigeria
In Kano, NDLEA officers arrested Magaji Dan Azumi, 42, in the Bebeji area with 386 kilograms of skunk.
Similarly, operatives in Gwagwalada recovered 282.2 kilograms of skunk from a suspect identified as Isah Wako.
In Edo State, NDLEA said its operatives raided the Egwa Forest Reserve in Aduan village, where Chinedo Odalonu was arrested. Officers also destroyed large cannabis farms in the forest and recovered 16.5 kilograms of skunk from the site.
The NDLEA said the operations form part of its ongoing nationwide crackdown on drug trafficking and abuse.