Hamza Al‑Mustapha rejects ex‑DSS officer's claim on Abacha’s death

Former Chief Security Officer to late Nigerian head of state General Sani Abacha, Major Hamza Al‑Mustapha, has dismissed the account given by former Department of State Services operative Dennis Amachree regarding Abacha’s death. Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the 3rd General Hassan Usman Katsina Memorial Conference at Arewa House in Kaduna, Al‑Mustapha called the memoir’s narrative “lies” and said he possesses CCTV footage that contradicts the claims. He quoted, “The boy was asked by others to write those lies. I have all the CCTV footage of what happened in my custody, so what he said is not true,” and urged Nigerians to “ignore his lies.”

Amachree’s memoir, The Shadow Warrior (also titled DSS @40: My Journey Behind the Shield), alleges that Abacha died of a cardiac arrest during an intimate encounter at the Presidential Villa on 8 June 1998. Al‑Mustapha said the former DSS director was not present at the Villa, that all access to the premises was documented, and that the author was acting on behalf of unnamed interests. He declined to release any details of the purported footage, emphasizing that the late ruler cannot defend himself against what he termed fabricated allegations.