08.11.2026 17:20
Kasım Kırcı from Sakarya, whose vehicle was hijacked by Arif Sefa Özdemir, who killed 8 people in Afyonkarahisar, recounted what he experienced in tears. Kırcı, saying that he and his wife escaped death, said, “He hit us from behind. We stopped. The man got out of the vehicle. I had gotten out too. I saw the gun in his hand. He said, ‘Leave the car and get away.’ My wife was in the car too. He made her get out as well. He told us to move next to the wall. Then he hijacked our car. He did not use violence. We moved away from the car. He took the car and left.”
Kasım Kırcı, from Sakarya, the owner of the jeep that Arif Sefa Özdemir, who killed 8 people in Afyonkarahisar, seized at gunpoint, said that he and his wife escaped death. Kırcı, stating that they were told, “They killed 8 people before you,” recounted what they experienced in tears.
THE ATTACKER SEIZED THE JEEP AT GUNPOINT
After the armed attacks that occurred in Afyonkarahisar on November 5 and claimed the lives of 8 people, the suspect Arif Sefa Özdemir also seized the 54 ACC 723-plated jeep of the couple from Sakarya while fleeing. Kasım Kırcı, the owner of the jeep that the attacker seized at gunpoint, recounted what they experienced. Saying that they were lucky to survive but saddened by the incident, Kasım Kırcı could not hold back his tears while recounting what they experienced. Kırcı, saying that he and his wife went to a thermal spa, said, “We went to Afyonkarahisar Gazlıgöl for a vacation. We said let’s take a stroll. That’s why we were there. Then in the late afternoon we went out to tour the villages. At that moment this incident happened to us.”
“HE WAS ARMED, HE TOLD US TO GO TO THE BASE OF THE WALL”
Stating that they thought they had had an accident because the attacker hit their vehicle from behind, Kırcı said, “He hit us from behind. We stopped. We thought we would say get well soon to each other. The man got out of the vehicle. I had also gotten out. I saw the gun in his hand. He said, ‘Abandon the car, get away.’ My wife was also in the car. He made her get out too. He told us to go to the base of the wall. Then he seized our car. He did not use violence.”
“HE TOOK THE CAR AND LEFT”
Stating that they were unaware that the attacker had previously killed 8 people, Kırcı said, “We moved away from the car. He took the car and left. After that, we made our reports to the necessary places, to 112. The gendarmerie and police forces came. We learned other details of the incident. They told us, ‘You got away well. Be thankful, he killed 8 people before you.’ When they said that, we felt bad too.”
Expressing that they later learned that the attacker had also killed 2 female teachers, Kırcı stated that they could not shake off the impact of the incident and said, “We waited until 22:30–23:00 at night. May God be pleased with the police forces. I thank them all. They were very attentive. Our vehicle was found during the night. They handed the vehicle over to us. They cared for us even down to our meal. We went through a bad incident.”
Kırcı said, “Neighbors who heard are visiting as if we had returned from the Hajj or Umrah. We survived, but 8 people died; it is a bad incident. May God have mercy on them all. I offer my condolences to their relatives.”