'90 Day Fiancé' star Debbie, 67, defends relationship with Osama, 24, as son says it 'makes me sick'

If anyone knows about age-gap relationships it's 67-year-old Debbie, one of the latest faces on the hit TLC reality series 90 Day Fiancé.

The eccentric artist - who is based in Sugar Hill, Georgia - met her match in Osama, a 24-year-old Moroccan man who connected with Debbie online.

Despite their 43-year age gap, the pair have continued a romantic relationship for several years, with Debbie traveling to Morocco to visit her international lover.

"He commented about my artwork and he was very complimentary," Debbie recalled, via In Touch Weekly. "We had so much in common. And he would send me pictures of his painting and poetry."

It was on Debbie's second trip to Morocco that Osama proposed to Debbie and asked her to live with him in Morocco. "I knew Osama was younger, but I didn't know how much younger until we met in person," she admitted.

"At first I said, 'Look, Osama, I just can't do this. You're too young.' But he made me see that it wasn't about the age and circumstances. It's about a deeper level of connectivity and us being a team," she explained.

However, not everyone is supportive of the unlikely pairing, including her police officer son Julien. In the show, he told producers that their almost 50-year age gap made him "sick to my stomach."

"This guy's young. He lives in a third-world country. He has no job. This is 100 percent a catfish," he said, per PEOPLE. Debbie continued to disagree with her son, informing him that Osama had not asked for money from her at all.

"In all this time, he has never asked for money," she argued, at which point Julien responded: "Not yet."

Julien then explained to the cameras that he was worried about his mother, who he feared was getting into something sinister and exploitative.

"My mom has always been such an outgoing, friendly, loving character," he revealed. "She's a free spirit. She's not going with eyes open. I think there's something sinister behind this. There's many fears as a loving son that I have for her."

Sadly, Debbie - who loves collecting fossils and crystals and sells semi-precious gemstone jewelry for a living - recounted how she had been single for 12 years following her two divorces.

"For 12 years I sat behind closed doors. I swore off men. Until I met Osama," adding that she eventually became hooked on him. "All of a sudden, he's like a tree that takes root in your heart," she said.

Featured image credit: 360b / Alamy