Abacha Died of Cardiac Arrest During Intimate Encounter, Not Poisoned Apples — Ex-DSS Operative

• Retired intelligence officer says new memoir reveals circumstances surrounding Abacha’s final hours.
• Former DSS assistant director dismisses decades-old poisoning conspiracy theories.
• Claims woman with Abacha fled Aso Rock before security officials discovered military ruler’s death.

Nearly three decades after the sudden death of former military Head of State, Gen. Sani Abacha, a retired Department of State Services (DSS) operative has offered a fresh account of the events surrounding the late ruler’s final moments, insisting he died of a cardiac arrest during an intimate encounter rather than from poisoning.

The claims were made by former Assistant Director of the DSS, Dennis Amachree, in his newly released memoir, DSS @40: My Journey Behind the Shield, excerpts of which were published on Tuesday.

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Amachree, who served as Assistant Director of Operations and Intelligence at the Lagos DSS Command when Abacha died in June 1998, said the former military leader suffered a fatal cardiac arrest around 4:05 a.m. at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

READ ALSO: How I Learned of Abacha’s Death After Being Locked in a Room — Abdulsalami

According to the retired intelligence officer, the incident occurred while Abacha was with a woman he identified as a pharmacist who had accompanied her elder sister—allegedly one of the late ruler’s girlfriends—to Aso Rock earlier that night.

He claimed the younger woman remained behind after her sister returned to the hotel, adding that Abacha later became unresponsive during their encounter.

“At about 4.05 a.m., as they were getting intimate, the pharmacist realised Abacha had stopped moving. She called out to him, but he was unresponsive and stiff. She checked his pulse; there was none,” Amachree wrote.

The former DSS official alleged that the woman, overwhelmed by panic, quickly dressed and requested transport back to her hotel before security personnel became aware of the situation.

He further claimed that she boarded an early morning flight to Lagos before efforts were made to locate her.

According to Amachree, when Abacha’s Chief Security Officer, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, was informed of the incident around 5 a.m., security agencies immediately launched efforts to trace the woman.

He said the DSS headquarters later directed him to locate and interrogate her in Lagos.

Recounting their meeting, Amachree claimed the woman’s first words during questioning were: “I did not kill him, he died on top of me.”

He said after taking her statement, she was flown back to Abuja for further investigations.

The retired intelligence officer maintained that the woman’s account provides the most accurate explanation of Abacha’s death and challenges the various conspiracy theories that have circulated since 1998, including persistent claims that the late military ruler was poisoned.

“The lady pharmacist’s account, on whom Abacha apparently had a coitus-induced cardiac arrest, remains the true position and puts an end to the conspiracy theories and half-truths that have gone viral,” he stated.

Abacha, who ruled Nigeria from November 1993 until his death on June 8, 1998, died while still in office. His sudden passing has remained one of the country’s most debated political events, with numerous conflicting narratives emerging over the years.