The real story behind 'Alpha Dog'

To the Markowitz’s family, their little son Nick had grown up so fast, right before their eyes. As a 3-year-old, he was reciting a nursery rhyme, with his older half-sister and  half-brother Nick had a privileged upbringing in the West Hills section of Los Angeles. 

But by the time he was 15, in the summer of 2000, Nick was about to become entangled in a bizarre series of events.  Tragedy would be just around the corner. 

A reputed West Hills pot dealer, Jesse James Hollywood and Nick’s half brother, Ben Markowitz reportedly were at war over a $1,200 dollar debt. Ben didn’t pay and then upped the ante.  Ben reportedly broke a window at Jesse Hollywood’s house.

Jesse Katz, senior writer, Los Angeles Magazine: It triggered this kind of tit-for-tat back-and-forth taunting between the two of them, which could have been sort of innocent trash-talking, or could have been very menacing.

But according to police, Jesse James Hollywood was determined to teach Ben Markowitz a lesson.  Police say one lazy Sunday in August 2000, Jesse James Hollywood and his crew went cruising through West Hills in a van, looking for Ben Markowitz to settle scores. They couldn’t find Ben. But they spotted a different opportunity— Nick Markowitz. 

He had nothing to do with his half-brother Ben’s drug debt.  Yet, he was snatched right from his own from his own neighborhood in broad daylight by Jesse James Hollywood and his posse.

Chris Hansen, Dateline correspondent: And why did they take Nick, if they were looking for Ben?

Katz: I think he was just convenient...

Hansen: Wrong place at the wrong time?

Katz: It was a moment, an opportunity, and they seized it.

Hansen: Once they grabbed Nick Markowitz, what did they do?

Katz: In the very beginning, they did hit him. They punched him and kicked him and threw him in the van.

Jeff and Susan Markowitz had no idea Nick had been abducted. For the first few hours, they thought Nick might be at a friend’s house. But then they started worrying.

Hansen: Where was Nick going when he left the house the day he disappeared?

Susan Markowitz: I wish I could ask him that. It’s still a mystery. We can only guess.

Hansen: You gave him a pager— and said "If I call this pager, you better return the call."

Susan Markowitz: Yes...

Hansen: So, you know when he didn’t call back that Sunday, something was up?

Susan Markowitz: Yes. Something was definitely wrong. He couldn’t call me back.  That’s what I knew.

Nick couldn’t call back because he was being held hostage in a van by Jesse James Hollywood and his crew. From West Hills they headed north on the 101.

Destination: Santa Barbara, about 70 miles away. At some point, Nick was told he was being held because of his half brother’s debt.

Katz: If Ben was in trouble, you Nick wasn’t gonna do anything to exacerbate that.  So I think Nick just went along with it. 

And then strangely enough, over time, Nick’s kidnapping eventually took on the air of a joyride.

Katz: Moments after he was abducted and thrown in the van, they let him take a Valium and fire up a joint.  So, suddenly, Nick is almost part of the party.

And what a party was. At times, four or five  posse members and even a small group of girls went in and out of the picture.  

Nick even stayed at three houses in Santa Barbara. And some parents who saw the group never realized exactly what was going on.

Katz: It does seem that parents kind of wandered in and out of the picture almost like ghosts, never really asking these inconvenient questions.  It’s almost like, you know—

Hansen: About “what the hell is going on here?”

Katz: It’s almost like you don’t want to know what the answer is. 

To the parents, it may have seemed like Nick was having fun instead of being held against his will. In fact, it looked like the posse itself wasn’t so sure what they were doing.    

Katz: I think they don’t know what to do with Nick Markowitz.  I mean that’s why he really wasn’t being held captive in the traditional sense. 

Hansen: I mean he wasn’t tied up, bound, gagged or anything like that.

Katz: There was a moment when he was, but it didn’t last very long. For the most part, they’re playing video games. 

In the meantime, though, back in West Hills, Nick’s mother and father were frantic. 

Jeff Markowitz: Susan did a spreadsheet that just went from childhood to 15 years on anybody and everybody Nick's ever met.

For the first day and a half, the Markowitzes were desperately making phone calls and struggling to figure out what could have happened.  After about 36 hours, they reached Ben Markowitz, Nick’s half-brother.

Jeff Markowitz: And when we knew that Nicholas hadn’t contacted Ben that’s when I realized “We got a real problem.”

The Markowitzes then called Los Angeles police. By then, of course, Nick was 70 miles away.

Over the next 24 hours, the posse moved from one hang out to another. Eventually, Nick  was brought by his captors to a Santa Barbara area motel for—of all things—a pool party.

He even became friendly with a 17-year-old girl who was hanging out with the crew.

Katz: You know, he’s in the swimming pool at a motel.  It would have been so easy to signal for help.

Universal Pictures A scene from the Universal movie

When Dateline first covered this case in 2001, we spoke to then-Santa Barbara county chief deputy sheriff Bruce Correll.

Hansen: So this kid’s thinking, “Alright, I’m in trouble here but once all this gets settled, I’m gonna be ok. They’re gonna let me go.”

Bruce Correll, then-deputy sheriff: At one time, young Nick made the comment that “This will be a story I can tell my grandchildren.”

Nick seemed oblivious to the real danger he might be facing. But whether Nick knew it or not, authorities say Hollywood realized snatching the 15-year-old old could mean big trouble.

Katz: Jesse James Hollywood was clever and shrewd enough to know that they’d done something pretty major. 

After the first day of Nick’s kidnapping, Hollywood allegedly got nervous and took off. According to court testimony, Jesse James Hollywood  left Nick Markowitz with his cohorts in Santa Barbara.  

He then came back to the San Fernando Valley to meet with an attorney who was a family friend.                       

Katz: Jesse James Hollywood went to the attorney’s home and said, “You know, there’s this situation.  Some kids are in trouble.  They’ve held somebody hostage.”  I’m not sure he revealed all the details. He probably asked, how big trouble are they in.

Authorities say Hollywood was told that anyone directly involved in Nick’s kidnapping could go to prison for life.

Katz:  And Jesse James Hollywood seemed to be very agitated by that news and stormed out of the lawyer’s house. 

Soon, what had seemed like an amateurish abduction would take a shocking turn.

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