Netizens React as Ex-DSS Operative Says Abacha Died During Intimacy With Nigerian Lady, "Deep Scars"
- Former DSS assistant director Dennis Amachree shared details of former Nigerian leader General Sani Abacha's final moments in a newly published memoir
- Amachree said a pharmacist who was with Abacha at Aso Rock that night fled the scene and caught a flight to Lagos at dawn
- The retired DSS official explained that he personally interrogated the woman after she was located in Ogudu, Lagos state
Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over nine years of experience covering public affairs and governance in Nigeria and Africa.
FCT, Abuja - A former senior official of the Department of State Services (DSS) has offered what he says is a firsthand account of how Nigeria's military ruler General Sani Abacha died in June 1998, revealing details that contradict years of speculation surrounding the general's death.
As reported on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, by Leadership, Dennis Amachree, who served as assistant director of operations and intelligence at the DSS Lagos command at the time, shared the account in his new book titled 'DSS at 40: My Journey Behind the Shield'.
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Source: Getty Images
Book details Abacha's final night
According to Amachree, Abacha's girlfriend, described as an Igbo woman, arrived at the Aso Rock Guest House from the Nicon Noga Hilton Hotel at approximately 2:40 am on June 8, 1998, accompanied by her younger sister. This pharmacist was in Abuja for a conference. Abacha had recently bought his girlfriend a new SUV, and the two women stopped by the presidential villa to greet him.
The girlfriend left shortly after, returning to the hotel and leaving the pharmacist alone with the head of state. Amachree writes that at around 4:05 am, the young woman realised Abacha had become unresponsive and had no pulse. She quickly dressed, told the soldier on guard duty that "Oga" (apparently referring to Abacha) had asked for a car to take her back to her hotel, and returned to the Hilton. By 7:00 am, she had boarded an Okada Airlines flight to Lagos.
Amachree said the pharmacist had already left Abuja by the time Abacha's chief security officer (CSO), Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, was informed of the general's condition at 5:00 am. Security operatives who rushed to the Hilton found only the girlfriend; her sister was gone.
How Sani Abacha allegedly died
Amachree was subsequently contacted by DSS national headquarters and tasked with locating the pharmacist in Lagos. His team found her in Ogudu, and he conducted the interrogation himself.
"The first thing she said to me was: 'I did not kill him, he died on top of me,'" Amachree recalled in the book, according to The Nation.
After her full account, she was flown back to Abuja. Amachree said her testimony pointed to a coitus-induced cardiac arrest and that it "puts an end to the conspiracy theories and half-truths that have gone viral," including claims involving Indian women and a poisoned apple.
Abacha: Nigerian tweeps weigh in
The fresh account by the former DSS operative drew varied responses on X (formerly Twitter).
Legit.ng captured some comments below:
@garrickkome wrote on X:
"Whether this story is true or not, one thing we can all agree on is that Abacha's regime left deep scars on Nigeria. History should focus more on the lives that were lost, the billions allegedly looted, and the damage done to our democracy than on how he eventually died."
@owinki1 took a different view:
"The only man who truly had the interest of Nigeria at heart. America and their allies killed him simply because he refused to serve their interests and chose to serve his country instead."
@OnMookie stated via an X post:
"Make una nor correct the narrative na. Leave am as e be. Status quo type shiiii. Apple lo pa Abacha (sic)."
Obi compares leaders to Abacha
Previously, Legit.ng reported that Nigerian presidential hopeful, Peter Obi, stirred fresh political controversy after accusing some former pro-democracy activists of abandoning the ideals they once defended.
Obi noted that their conduct in power now compares unfavourably with that of the late Abacha.
Source: Legit.ng
