In July 2009, Ben Novack Jr., a wealthy Florida businessman and heir to the Fontainebleau Miami Beach hotel, was found bludgeoned to death in a Hilton Rye Brook Hotel, New York room. The incident occurred a few months after Ben's mother, Bernice, was found dead in the garage of her upscale Fort Lauderdale home. Her death was ruled an accident until his killing.
Ben's wife Narcy was the first to find his body and was soon declared a suspect in the case after authorities learned that she was jealous of the fact that the victim was having an affair with a younger woman. Multiple other leads and suspects were also examined during the investigation.
Ultimately, Narcy Nocack and her brother Cristóbal Véliz were charged and convicted of orchestrating a murder-for-hire plot of the multi-millionaire and his mother. Both were arrested after detectives found the hired hitmen in the case. Both men confessed that Narcy was afraid Ben would leave her for his mistress.
A Time to Kill on ID will revisit Ben Novack Jr.'s gruesome murder in an episode titled Heir to Murder, which airs this Thursday, June 15, at 9:00 pm ET. Here's what the synopsis states:
"In an affluent New York suburb, killers torture and beat millionaire Ben Novack in his hotel room; detectives soon discover that the businessman had many enemies, but one above all is the sadistic mastermind."
Ben Novack Jr. was murdered a few months after his mother's presumed accidental fall-related death
Ben Novack Jr. was found bludgeoned to death with dumbbells in room number 453 of suburban New York's Hilton Rye Brook Hotel on July 12, 2009. His wife Narcy was the first to arrive at the crime scene and find the 53-year-old covered in blood and lying face-down with his hands and legs bound with duct tape. Reports state that his eyes were gouged out.
Detectives found that Ben's gold bracelet with "BEN" spelled out with diamonds was missing from the crime scene while other expensive pieces of jewelry remained in their place. They also learned that he was the sole heir to the family's multimillion-dollar estate and was having an affair with a p*rn star named Rebecca Bliss at the time.
According to ABC News, Narcy Novack claimed that she was sharing the room with the victim, but had left sometime around 7:00 am after breakfast. She only found the grisly scene after returning about 40 minutes later.
Moreover, a few months prior to Ben Novack Jr.'s murder, his elderly mother Bernice Novack was found dead in the garage of her lavish home in Fort Lauderdale. The 87-year-old's death was initially ruled to be an accident and that she died while trying to get out of her car.
An ensuing investigation revealed that Narcy was jealous of Ben's affair with Rebecca and was worried that he might leave her for the mistress. Detectives also learned that the wife had a brother named Cristóbal Véliz, who was linked to an ex-convict named Alejandro Gutiérrez-García using bank statements and phone records.
The hired hitmen confessed to their roles in Ben Novack Jr.'s murder plotted by his jealous wife and her brother
Reports state that Alejandro Gutiérrez-García was placed at the Hilton Rye Brook Hotel with another man, later identified as Joel González using surveillance footage and were eventually linked to Ben Novack Jr.'s with physical evidence.
Following this, both Alejandro and Joel confessed to their roles in the crime, claiming that Narcy Novack and her brother Cristóbal Véliz hired them for the murders of Ben and his elderly mother, which were executed about three months apart from each other.
The hired hitmen revealed that Cristóbal paid them for the hit and allegedly bought the dumbbells which were used to bludgeon Ben to death. They further alleged that Narcy gave them access to the victim's hotel room and even asked them to gouge out his eyes. Surveillance also captured Cristóbal driving both men to New York days before the murder.
The siblings attempted to pin the blame on Narcy's daughter from a previous marriage to get her out of the way and inherit Ben Novack Jr.'s entire multimillion-dollar estate. Both were found guilty on multiple counts of murder, conspiracy to commit murder, domestic violence, and witness tampering, among other charges. They were sentenced to life without parole.
Meanwhile, the hired hitmen pleaded guilty to lesser charges and were given respective prison terms of 17-and-a-half years for their roles.
Learn more about Ben Novack Jr.'s slaying on ID's A Time to Kill this Thursday at 9 pm ET.
