Former Assistant Director of the Department of State Services (DSS), Dennis Amachree, has provided fresh details on the death of former military Head of State, General Sani Abacha, in his newly released book.
Speaking during an interview, Amachree dismissed several long-standing theories surrounding Abacha’s death, insisting that many of those who have spoken on the matter were not privy to the actual events.
“A lot of people have come up with different stories about what happened, but they were not aware of the facts. They were looking at events from the outside and drawing conclusions.
“Some even claimed certain actions caused his death, but they are not doctors and cannot say with certainty what killed him,” he said.
Amachree revealed that the key eyewitness to the incident was a woman who was with Abacha shortly before his death. According to him, she had arrived at the residence with her sister, who was said to be Abacha’s acquittance.
“The girl who was with him when he died was later brought to me for questioning. When she entered my office, the first thing she said was, ‘I did not kill him.’ She was very direct about it,” he recalled.
He explained that after interviewing her, he found no reason to doubt her account of the events.
“I had to believe her because she had no reason to lie to me. I did not create an atmosphere that would make her feel threatened.
“Her account remains the only true eyewitness account of what happened because nobody else was in that room with them,” he said.
Based on the testimony he received and the investigation that followed, Amachree said he believes Abacha died of natural causes.
“From everything she told me and from what I gathered during the investigation, I strongly believe it was a heart attack. She did not know he was dead while she was with him, but later realized something was wrong. In my assessment, his death was the result of a heart attack,” he stated.
The revelations add another perspective to the decades-long debate over the circumstances surrounding Abacha’s death on June 8, 1998.
