Abacha died during intimate encounter — former DSS chief

Abdullateef Fowewe

Former DSS official Dennis Amachree has given a striking account of the final moments of Sani Abacha, saying the late military ruler died around 4:05 a.m. during an intimate encounter at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

In excerpts from his new book, DSS @40: My journey behind the shield, Amachree said the woman involved later fled to Lagos and reportedly told investigators, “I did not kill him, he died on top of me”.

Amachree, who was assistant director of operations and intelligence at the Lagos DSS command when Abacha died, said the incident happened after the woman’s older sister, described as Abacha’s girlfriend, had visited Aso Rock with her younger sister, a pharmacist.

He alleged that after Abacha became unresponsive, the woman panicked, left the guest house, and was taken back to her hotel before flying to Lagos.

He also claimed the account clears up years of speculation, including rumours about “imported Indian girls” and poisoned apples.

According to him, the woman’s statement pointed instead to a possible cardiac arrest during sex.

Abacha ruled Nigeria from November 1993 to June 1998, and his death has remained one of the most controversial moments in the country’s political history.

His era is still associated with harsh repression, rights abuses, and entrenched authoritarian rule.

Abacha died about a month before MKO Abiola, winner of the June 12, 1993 election, whose detention during the military era remains a defining symbol of that period.