Ray William Johnson: True Story Podcast - Her Boyfriend Destroyed Her // The Berfin Ozek Story

Episode Date: May 29, 2026

In 2019, 18-year-old Berfin Ozek from Turkey was brutally attacked with sulfuric acid by her ex-boyfriend, Casim Ozan Celtik, who told her "if I can't have you, no one can". The assault left her permanently disfigured and partially blind.

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Her name's Berfin. And Berfin's around 18 when the story starts and she's living in Turkey. And Berfin, she has a problem. The problem is her boyfriend is terrible. His name is Qasim. And Qasim cheats on Burfin more than once and she catches him. He's also super controlling and he demands to know where she's going all the time. and he tells her where she can and can't go.

But despite this, Burfin forgives him again and again and again because she always thinks to herself, I can fix him. And when she introduces Qasim to her parents, they instantly hate him. And Burfin's mom even warns her, there's just something about this guy I don't like.

And so one day in 2019, the situation gets even worse. Because Burfin and Qasim meet up. somewhere with a group of friends and when Berfin walks in Kassim is super pissed off. He's mad about what she's wearing. So in front of everyone he's like how dare you show up looking like that and pow he slaps her across the face and Burfin leaves crying. Later Kassim tries to patch things up and he texts her I'm sorry I won't ever do it to you again. I love you but Berfin decides enough is enough. She says how many more times can I forgive you I can't do

this anymore. It's over. And she finally breaks up with him. And this pisses Kasim off. He texts her back, you're going to pay for this. I won't let you live. And so Berfin blocks him. Fuck him. But Qasim, he isn't going to let this slide. He decides that if he can't have her, no one can. And he comes up with a seriously evil plan. Meanwhile, Berfin, she goes on living her life. Like, I'm sure she's upset about the breakup, but she knows she'll get over it, you know, with time. But then, one day, she's walking home from school, and Kassim is nearby, and he's stalking her. He's been secretly following her and watching her. Then, suddenly, he comes out of hiding, and he runs up to her, and boom, he pours a liquid on her face.

And poor Bufin has no idea what's happening, but her face starts burning. Her skin, her eyes, they feel like they're on fire, and she falls over in pain. because Qasim just attacked her with acid. Then he runs away and he leaves her there in the street. Luckily, Burfin's aunt is inside her house and she can hear her screaming outside. So she gets her and she drives her to the hospital. Later, Berfin's parents arrive at the hospital and there the doctor breaks the news to them. She's going to be disfigured and disabled for life.

She lost one eye completely and she can barely see out of the other. And since there's no question about who did this, Bam, Qasim is arrested, and he's thrown in jail. But the story isn't over. When news gets out about Berfin's acid attack, it blows the fuck up, and it becomes massive national headlines in Turkey. And people on social media start to rally behind her, and they launch a campaign to raise money for her,

and the Ministry of Health steps in to cover the specialized surgeries she needs at private hospitals. so Berfin undergoes dozens of surgeries to reconstruct her face with her parents stepping in, taking care of her and helping her recover. When she recovers from those surgeries, she starts wearing her hair in a way that covers her most damaged eye to avoid people, you know, staring at her in public. But even after that very traumatic experience, Berfin decides she's not going to go out quietly. And she goes on to tell her story and she does lots of media and public interviews, talking about what happened to her, and suddenly she's kind of famous in Turkey.

She becomes a national symbol and an advocate for ending violence against women. And a woman's advocacy group gets legal representation for her, and soon she has a team of lawyers to fight in court on her behalf, hoping to aggressively push the court for the maximum possible charge against Kasim. And Berfin's parents start working with these lawyers too, because they really want Kasim to get punished for what. he did. So it seems like the entire country is behind Berfin. But then, Qasim goes to trial, and he's found guilty, and he's up for his sentencing, and everyone is watching, expecting the

judges to give him life in prison for attempted murder. But Qasim's only sentenced to 13 and a half years in prison. And the public is super outraged by this. I mean, they feel like it isn't enough. And he ruined this woman's life and all he got was 13 and a half years. Even the president of Turkey makes a public statement and criticizes the ruling for being far too light. And of course, Berfin is devastated by the ruling too. And she's interviewed by reporters and she asks the court, is that all my suffering is worth to you? 13 years? But what's done is done.

Kassim's sentence is what it is. Here's what's really crazy, though. While sitting in prison, Kassim still thinks that he can win Berfin back. So he starts writing her love letters from lockup. He writes and he says how sorry he is and how he'd never do it again because he's changed and he tells her that he still loves her and he wants to be with her. And Berfin's reading these letters like, yeah, right, he's just trying to manipulate me. But for months, these letters keep coming and coming.

And eventually, for some reason, she starts writing him back. So they're writing back and forth a bit to one another, and over time, she starts thinking to herself, I can fix him. So she writes a formal letter to the court saying, Kassim and I have written many letters to each other. I have given myself to him.

I love him very much. And she officially withdraws her complaint against him. And when the public finds out about what she did, It's like a bomb goes off. All those people online who donated to her, who supported her, who looked up to her, the women's advocacy groups, her own lawyers who spent a year fighting for her to get justice in court. Her parents who watched her suffer, took care of her throughout all her surgeries, supported her through everything. All of them feel betrayed. How could she do this to them?

How could she do this to herself? But then it gets even worse. In 2020, after the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Turkey changes its prison laws in an effort to reduce overcrowding in prisons and, you know, reduce COVID transmission in there. And this new law means that after only serving just two years, Kassim is now free to go. And so by 2021, he gets out and he immediately meets up with Burfin and he gets down on one knee. and he proposes to her and she says yes. And then she marries the man who disfigured her and tried to kill her. And they do this without telling anyone.

Like, even her parents have no idea that this happened. And their marriage quickly becomes national news in Turkey. And one day, her father is on social media and bam, he sees his daughter marrying the man who caused his family so much suffering. She's just made him his son-in-law. And this is how he finds out on social media, just like everyone else. And of course, he's all devastated, and reporters reach out to him for comment, and now he's on the news, and he says,

I cannot accept this man as my son-in-law. I spent years fighting for my daughter to get justice, and now it's all been in vain. And so Berfin ends up marrying her attacker, and ultimately she becomes estuary. from her parents and from everyone who tried to help her.