This one is going to be a dark one; not only because of the details of this case and what actually occurred on the fourth of October this year in Turkey but also because a total media blackout has been issued on the case, by the Turkish government, effectively censoring the incident.
Interestingly, over the course of the initial investigation, it was determined that the murderer had a notable item on his bookshelf: the crime novel Ragdoll by Daniel Cole. The novel follows a detective hunting a serial killer who murders six individuals, dismembers their bodies, and stitches their limbs together to create a grotesque puppet-like figure.
The discovery of a dark pencil sketch in Çelik’s room, depicting rearranged body parts, bears a disturbing resemblance to the gruesome details of the murders described in the book, raising questions about a possible influence.
Semih’s Murder-Suicide: The Case that Shook Turkey to the Core
So, what happened? On Friday, October 4th, a tragic double homicide occurred in Istanbul, claiming the lives of two 19-year-old women, İkbal Uzuner and Ayşenur Halil. The assailant, identified as Semih Çelik, also 19, initially attacked Uzuner in his residence located in Eyüpsultan. Shortly afterward, he proceeded to target Halil near the Edirnekapı Walls in the Fatih district. Following the brutal killings, Çelik took his own life. Authorities are continuing their investigation into the motive behind these horrifying events, which have left the local community in shock.
Major western news outlets have reviewed key aspects of the Semih Çelik case based on the testimonies provided to the police by Çelik’s father, Adem Çelik, and Hasan Uzuner, the father of İkbal Uzuner.
Their statements shed light on the tragic events’ circumstances surrounding the tragic events, offering further insights into the incident and the potential factors leading up to the crime. Authorities are thoroughly analyzing these accounts as part of the ongoing investigation.
In the Life of a Depressed, Anti-social addict
According to the testimony provided by Adem Çelik, his son Semih Çelik had been a student at Oğuz Can Polat Anatolian Imam Hatip High School prior to the pandemic. In his statement, reviewed by BBC Turkish, Adem describes his son as a devout believer until the age of 16, recalling how Semih once urged him to pray, warning, “You will burn in hell if you do not.” However, concerns began to surface in Semih’s third year of high school when a school counselor contacted his mother, advising her to keep her distance from another student.
Adem noted changes in Semih’s behavior, especially after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and mentioned that the teenager spent an increasing amount of time on his computer, quickly shutting it off whenever his mother, sister, or grandmother entered the room. During this time, text messages with his former classmates show that he was getting interested in the macabre, true crime, and websites of gore. Semih also spent hours browsing websites on snuff films, reading about cases of “incels” who got into rebellion.
Eventually, Semih decided to drop out of school, telling his family that continuing his education no longer seemed worthwhile. Despite encouragement to study abroad, which many students take upon, Semih completed his education through an open education system.
A significant incident occurred on March 1, 2022, when İkbal Uzuner’s mother contacted Adem, claiming that Semih had “brainwashed” her daughter, and the two were planning to commit suicide together. That evening, Semih attempted suicide on an indoor sports pitch. Following this, he was taken to the children’s department for questioning and received treatment at Bakırköy Sadi Konuk Hospital.
He was later referred to Istanbul University Çapa Faculty of Medicine, where he stayed for three weeks. Although a doctor prescribed psychological medication, Adem states that Semih never took it, and his mental health continued to deteriorate.
Semih Moves into a new passion profession — Butchery
Soon after getting released from the hospital, Semih changed his profession path into butchery. Though what made him get into this profession is unknown, he used the money that he earned from his profession to get into drugs. His parents have told the authorities that their son has been using drugs for the better part of the last nine months (during which he got fired from his job as a butcher).
However, for the past three months, he had reduced his drugs intake and relied on alcohol. His father also mentions that during the winter of 2023, they had long talks on why suicide is a sin, but Semih mentioned repeatedly that “life is empty.”
Semih also underwent a religious transformation during this time and got increasingly into satanism, pagan rituals, and studies on demonology and witchcraft. His father also told Reuters that on one instance, he entered the room of the late teenager to find out drawings of horned entities, writings on rituals, and runic symbols. When pressed about what they were about, Semih maintained an indifferent attitude, even going as far as mentioning that “you will not understand my mindset.”
According to the statement provided by Hasan Uzuner, as reported by the Demirören News Agency, his daughter İkbal Uzuner had been friends with Semih Çelik for a period, but the relationship took a troubling turn. Hasan stated that Çelik began harassing his daughter, causing her significant psychological distress. This led to transferring İkbal to a different school to help her recover.
Hasan explained, “My daughter was studying high school in Fatih and met Semih at school. He started bothering her in the first half of her third year. When this persisted, I moved her to another school.” He added that his daughter’s mental health had suffered, and she began receiving treatment from a psychologist. To aid her recovery, Hasan bought a cat, which İkbal cared for, and her mental state improved over time.
Further easing their concerns, Hasan recalled a conversation with Semih Çelik’s mother, who reassured them that Semih had moved on. “His mother called and told us, ‘My son has a new girlfriend, they are happy, and he won’t bother your daughter anymore.’ İkbal had not had any contact with Semih for the last 1.5 years, and her mental health had greatly improved during that time.”
The Butcher of İkbal Uzuner and Ayşenur Halil
The culmination of Semih’s evil acts happened on the fourth of October, when he chose to perform the murder-suicide on the top of the Edirnekapı Walls, a part of the defensive walls of old Constantinople.
Adem Çelik, the father of Semih Çelik, explained that about a year ago, his son began dating Ayşenur Halil, a girl he knew from Oğuz Can Polat Imam Hatip High School. He noted that Ayşenur would visit their home on Mondays, and that his son and Ayşenur would meet both at home and outside.
Adem also shared that shortly before the incident, his daughter had been accepted to a university in Ankara. His wife, daughter, and son traveled to Ankara, with Semih returning home later, leaving only the father and son at home.
As a motorcycle courier, Adem recounted his last phone conversation with his son on the day of the tragedy. During the call, Semih warned him, “Ayşenur is at home, don’t come, dad.”
Additionally, Adem mentioned that on the day of the incident, his wife had video-called their son. She said she had spoken with both Semih and Ayşenur during the call.
Later that day, Adem received a call from his wife informing him that the police were at their home, asking him to return immediately. Upon arriving, he learned about the incident from the authorities.
Meanwhile, Hasan Uzuner, the father of İkbal Uzuner, recounted the events of the day his daughter was murdered:
My wife called my daughter on the day of the incident, but a man answered the phone. He told her, ‘Don’t worry, your daughter is in safe hands.’ When my wife called again, another man answered and said the phone had fallen from the city walls. He gave her directions and said, ‘You can come and pick up the phone.’ After that, I called my daughter, and the man who answered told me he would only hand over the phone to her mother.
When they arrived at the location, Semih threw the decapitated head of their daughter at the mother, as a taunting.
An Older Footage Of A Suicidal (and Murderous) Semih
In the aftermath of the incident, several videos and photos have surfaced, offering a glimpse into Semih Çelik’s mindset and surroundings. Ekol TV released a video, reportedly filmed a year prior, in which Çelik is seen addressing someone directly.
The video begins with the words, “İkbal, I wanted to say a special goodbye to you. I am finally dying.” Çelik then expresses regret for the pain he had caused, before revealing a chilling detail: “But I have something to tell you. Yesterday, when I saw you, I came to kill you,” though he later mentions changing his mind.
Additionally, İhlas News Agency published several photos of Çelik’s room. The images depict a bookshelf with books, a desk, artwork, and toys. One particularly disturbing photo shows a notebook on his desk containing a drawing of a dismembered human body.
“My child has been buried for days, but I am grieving for those girls.”
Following the tragic killings, Semih Çelik’s mother shared her deep sorrow, revealing that her son had been struggling with psychological issues for an extended period, leaving her feeling helpless. Tearfully, she explained that despite numerous efforts to seek treatment for Semih, the support she needed was insufficient. “I fought hard for my son, took him to hospitals, and sought help when he attempted suicide. But the doctors said there was nothing wrong with him. When I called an ambulance, they said it wasn’t necessary. I screamed and tried everything, but I couldn’t help him. Whatever happened to him, it happened after the pandemic,” she said.
During the pandemic, Semih isolated himself in his room and began using drugs, according to his mother. She also stated that once she noticed changes in her son’s behavior, she warned İkbal Uzuner’s family, saying, “I told them my son wasn’t well and to keep their daughter away. They transferred her to another school, but the connection between them remained.”
Recalling her video call with Semih on the day of the incident, his mother shared the details: “Semih called me via video. I asked him how he was and what he was doing. He told me, ‘Mom, I’m fine. Ayşenur is with me, she’s in the bathroom and feels shy, so she doesn’t want to appear on camera.’ We talked for a bit, and then he hung up. I didn’t notice anything unusual during that call. Whatever changed in him happened after he started using drugs during the pandemic,” she emphasized.
“I am in immense pain. My child has been in the ground for days, yet my heart aches for those girls. I feel helpless. I couldn’t solve my son’s problems; he was suicidal. I wish he had only taken his own life. I wish I had died instead of those girls. I’m a mother too—would I ever want another mother to face the horror of having her child’s head thrown before her?” she expressed tearfully.
Did Semih Çelik Draw Inspiration From A Novel “One Body, Six Victims”?
During the investigation of Semih Çelik’s home, following his murder of İkbal Uzuner and Ayşenur Halil and subsequent suicide, authorities discovered a novel in his bookshelf that raised suspicions.
The book in question, Ragdoll by Daniel Cole, tells the story of a detective pursuing a serial killer who murders six people, dismembers their bodies, and stitches them together to form a new grotesque figure. The discovery of a dark pencil sketch in Çelik’s room, depicting a dismembered body similar to that of İkbal Uzuner, strongly mirrored the gruesome details from the novel, leading to speculation that Ragdoll may have influenced Çelik.
The novel Ragdoll begins with the murder of 27 girls over the course of 27 days by a serial killer.
Summary of Ragdoll: “The story opens with the trial of a serial killer who murdered 27 girls, aged between 14 and 16, over a span of 27 days. During the trial, Detective William Fawkes loses control and attacks the defendant, resulting in his dismissal from the police force. Fawkes is later reinstated when a new, gruesome murder takes place.
A serial killer dismembers six victims, stitching together parts from each body to create a horrifying figure. Dubbed ‘The Ragdoll’ by the media, the discovery shocks the entire country. Soon after, the killer releases a list of six more potential victims, complete with the dates they will be murdered. To Fawkes’ surprise, his own name appears last on the list.”
The eerie parallels between the novel’s plot and the sketches found in Semih Çelik’s room, along with the dismemberment of İkbal Uzuner, suggest a possible influence from Ragdoll on Çelik’s actions.
RIP Victims.
Next, read about the Case of Lisa Marie Young, and then, the disappearance of Elyssa Marie Vasquez.