Former Chief Security Officer to the late Head of State Sani Abacha, Hamza Al Mustapha, has dismissed claims made by former Department of State Services Assistant Director Dennis Amachree regarding the circumstances of Abacha’s death, describing the account as false.

Amachree, in a new memoir chronicling his career in the security service, described Abacha as having died in the presence of a woman during an intimate encounter at the presidential villa in the early hours of the morning, saying the woman and her older sister, described as Abacha’s girlfriend, had arrived at the villa earlier that day.

Speaking to journalists in Kaduna, Al Mustapha said the claims were untrue and alleged the author had been influenced by others to write them, saying he possesses CCTV footage from the time that contradicts the account. He urged the public to disregard the claims, saying it is inappropriate to make unverified statements about someone no longer alive to respond.