Stunning Details Emerge In Brutal Murder Of Hotel Heir At Rye Town Hilton
RYE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- There are disturbing new details in a murder mystery that unfolded at the elegant Rye Town Hilton, where a hotel heir was found tortured to death in his room.
His wife was charged and convicted.
Correspondent Troy Roberts of "48 Hours" talked to police about the twisted trail of evidence.
Rye Brook Police Det. Sgt. Terry Wilson and Det. Allison Carpentier said they had never witnessed a crime scene as gruesome as the one they described.
"It was a brutal scene. His eyes had both been cut out," Carpentier said.
The victim, 53-year-old Ben Novack Jr., was a multi-millionaire Florida businessman. His mutilated body was discovered in a hotel room in Rye Brook in the early morning hours of July 12, 2009.
Police learned from Ben Novack's wife, Narcy Novack, that she and her husband were at the hotel all weekend, running a large Amway convention.
As police began their investigation, they soon learned their victim came from a fascinating background -- his parents once owned the famous Fontainebleau Hotel, once the hottest spot on Miami Beach in the swinging 1960s.
In the hours after the murder of Ben Novack, detectives were talking to as many people as they could.
"The only one else that had access to that room was Narcy," Carpentier said.
However, Narcy Novack emphatically denied involvement in the murder.
"I have nothing to do with my husband's death," she said on interrogation recordings. I loved my husband.
But as investigators would soon uncover, Ben Novack had an appetite for other women.
"Narcy always suspected Ben of cheating. She was a very jealous woman," a family friend said.
"I think she … she knew she was gonna be replaced," Carpentier added.
Ben Novack had become very serious with one woman in particular. Rebecca Bliss, formerly known as Mona Love, was all over the Internet.
"He was sort of looking for a bad girl," Bliss said.
"She admits being a prostitute, [acting in] pornographic movies," Carpentier said.
Bliss said what began as a sexual tryst grew into a serious ongoing relationship of almost two years.
"He used to make me laugh,' Bliss said. "He would tell me he loved me every day."
With Bliss waiting in the wings, the question was whether Ben Novack was about to leave his wife.
"She called me, screaming at me. She said if she couldn't have him no one will," Bliss said.
You can see Roberts' exclusive interview with Ben Novack's mistress, who police believe was part of the motive for murder, on Saturday night on "48 Hours" at 10 p.m. on CBS 2.
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