Nearly 250 people put down their bikes for a moment of silence for Tom Hollowell, a cyclist killed at 12th and Constitution Ave. NW on Sept. 24. (Jordan Pascale / WAMU)

D.C. police have arrested and charged a Maryland man in the hit-and-run that killed a cyclist near the National Mall in late September.

The Metropolitan Police Department announced on Friday that 20-year-old Phillip Peoples, of Suitland, Md., was charged with second degree murder in D.C. Superior Court for allegedly running a red light on Sept. 24 at the intersection of 12th and Constitution Ave and hitting a cyclist at a “high rate of speed” around 7:30 a.m. The driver then sped away from the scene of the crime.

Second degree murder requires “malice aforethought,” meaning a person intended to kill or inflict great injury on another person, or possessed “reckless indifference to an unjustifiably high risk to human life,” and can result in a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Thomas Hendricks Hollowell, a 64-year-old Smithsonian employee from Arlington, was identified as the victim, and died of his injuries at a nearby hospital.

Hundreds of people, including Hollowell’s grandchildren, wife, co-workers, friends, and strangers, gathered at that intersection in early October for a memorial in his honor. For 15 minutes, white-clad attendees blocked the intersection with their bikes for a moment of silence. They put a white ghost bike, upon which his wife placed a sign stating, “A cyclist was killed here.”

According to court documents, police found Peoples through the Virginia license plate tag picked up by D.C. Department of Transportation cameras. When detectives found the vehicle in question, it had damage to its front and a shattered front windshield.

Peoples told police that he went to work at Safeway using an Uber at 11 a.m. and then to school via bus on September 24, the day of the crash, though a store manager told detectives that Peoples clocked into work much earlier than he had told them—7:52 a.m., the documents say.

Peoples also told police a friend named “Darrin” was borrowing the car during the time of the incident, per the affidavit. Peoples did not provide details about Darrin aside from a phone number, for which detectives say there were no records. Additionally, police say a witness told them that Peoples was the only person known to drive the vehicle.

While Peoples said he would let officers check his Uber app to confirm his story, he logged out when detectives started to open the app, according to the court documents.

The documents also outline how police obtained a search warrant for Peoples’ cell phone and determined that it was utilizing cell phone towers along the route of the crash. The phone also allegedly contained a text from Peoples on the day of the crash that said, “I jus [sic] hit somebody bad my whole car fucked up.” He said that a cyclist “ran a loght [sic]. It’s glass all over me.” Police contend that Peoples, not the cyclist, ran the red light.

Peoples made his first appearance in D.C. Superior Court over the case on Saturday, and a preliminary hearing is scheduled for October 23. He remains in custody in the D.C. Jail and has a public defender working on his case.

Eight pedestrians, including cyclists, scooter riders, and those walking, have been killed in D.C. by drivers since June 23. Most recently, sa woman struck by the driver of a truck by McPherson Square on Friday morning was pronounced dead. The driver remained on the scene.

Updated to reflect that the woman struck by the driver of a truck on Friday died of her injuries and with information about the police investigation into Peoples. Reporting contributed by Martin Austermuhle.