Major General Tochukwu Nwankwo was the head of the Special Division under the Department of State Services of Nigeria. That was the position on paper, within the general government structure. In truth, the DSS held no real authority over this Division, whose officers bore military ranks without undergoing the standard procedures. Its head stood outside normal military jurisdiction and wielded powers that at times surpassed even those of the Chief of Army Staff. The Director-General of the DSS, himself a Major General from the Army, understood this clearly. The Special Division reported directly to the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
