Former Assistant Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), Dennis Amachree, has shared his account of the events surrounding the death of Nigeria’s former Head of State, General Sani Abacha, including what he said a woman present at the time told him during an interrogation.
According to a report by TheCable published on Tuesday, July 21, 2026, Amachree made the remarks during an interview in which he recounted his involvement in the investigation that followed Abacha’s death in June 1998.
Amachree alleged that Abacha died while he was with a woman at the Aso Rock Guest House.
According to him, the woman fled the scene shortly after Abacha’s death and travelled to Lagos.
He said the DSS headquarters subsequently directed him to locate and apprehend her for questioning.
In his words, “I was instructed by the DSS headquarters to go after her. We traced her to Lagos, arrested her, and brought her to my office for interrogation.”
Amachree said he personally conducted the interrogation and that the woman immediately denied any involvement in Abacha’s death.
Recalling the encounter, he stated, “I interrogated her myself. The first thing she said to me was, ‘I did not kill him. He died on top of me.'”
He added that the woman insisted throughout the interrogation that Abacha’s death was not caused by any action on her part.
According to Amachree, “She kept saying, ‘I didn’t kill him. He just died on top of me.'”
According to Amachree, the woman then gave what he described as a detailed account of the events leading up to the former Head of State’s death.
He said her explanation led him to conclude that Abacha had suffered a heart attack while they were together.
In his words, “After listening to her detailed account, it was clear to me that he had suffered a heart attack while they were having sex.”
Amachree said he immediately reported the outcome of the interrogation to the DSS leadership in Abuja.
He stated, “After her detailed account, I called the Director in Abuja, and she was immediately flown back.”
He maintained that, based on the account he received during the interrogation, there was no indication that the woman had caused Abacha’s death.
According to him, “From everything she told me, there was nothing to suggest that she killed him.” he added.
