The whereabouts of Apetu of Ipetumodu, Oba Joseph Olugbenga Oloyede, is causing ripples in his domain, as residents and indigenes of the community are calling for the intervention of the Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, in unraveling the mystery behind his disappearance.

Oba Oloyede, a United States of America-based accountant and information system expert, was appointed new Apetu in July 2019.

He succeeded Oba James Adegoke, who died on November 26, 2017.

Our correspondents learnt that the royal father had been regularly shuttling between Nigeria and his base in the US since his installation.

However, since March 2024 that he left his domain, he has not been seen, fueling speculations about his whereabouts.

While some of the residents who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of attack said Oloyede was indisposed and was recuperating in the US, many others believed the monarch was facing trial for fraud.
A chief in Ipetumodu, who spoke on condition of anonymity to Saturday PUNCH, said many of his colleagues, including the Oosa of Ipetumodu, who is next in line to Apetu, had stopped going to the palace.

He said, “It’s been close to a year now that we have not seen our king in the town.”

The chief noted that Oloyede was also missing critical community events.

“Last December, we were told he would come back to town before January ended, but it’s now February and we haven’t seen him. It was the IPU Chairman, Joba Akinjogbe, that spoke on behalf of the king during this year’s Christian annual prayer.

“But on the day of the prayer, we saw someone that looked like our monarch on screen through a projector. But we didn’t see his face. He told the gathering that he was not in prison and promised to come back by January ending.

“In 2024, we were told he was sick but since then, we have not seen him in town and nobody knows where he is,” he added.


https://punchng.com/osun-monarch-faces-covid-19-fraud-trial-in-us/