In April 1996, James Wengert, owner of a financial investigation firm called Financial Search, was shot in his San Clemente office parking garage while walking back to his car one night. He survived, but a detective noted that he had been shot in the face—and used to live about a mile away from the Carvers.

The following month, police shared that they believed Carver's murder to be a botched hit, the killer having mistaken Carver for Wengert's wife, Margaret, who didn't jog but was known to walk her dog in the neighborhood every day. Three days before Carver was killed, Margaret Wengert had sued Premium Commercial Services Corp.—a finance company that had loaned James Wengert $400,000—alleging the owner had been aggressively trying to get her to sign over their home by way of payment.

Paul Alleyne, who had ties to Premium, was charged with attempted murder and armed robbery for his attack on Wengert. During their investigation of him and Premium, detectives unearthed another name.

Subsequently, Leonard Owen Mundy, a small business owner and father of two, was arrested and charged with murder after witnesses recognized his picture as the man who shot Carver.