Stonington ― Police announced late Wednesday that they had identified a suspect and taken possession of the SUV that they say struck and killed high school custodian Gary Piver on Monday night.

Police said detectives identified the SUV and the suspect by using town cameras, private cameras and license plate reader cameras.

Deputy Chief Todd Olson said police “will continue our investigation and then, with the information that we have, we’ll determine whether an arrest warrant can be applied for or not.”

Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact Stonington Police at 860-599-4411.

Police have said the 69-year-old Piver, a lifelong resident, was riding his bicycle westbound with traffic on Route 1 Monday night when he was struck by a dark gray Toyota SUV traveling west, The SUV fled after hitting Piver in the area of a small commercial building at 210 South Broad St. that houses three business just west of the high school.

Westerly Ambulance transported Piver to Westerly Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Piver would have turned 70 on Tuesday.

Superintendent Mary Anne Butler described Piver as “a dedicated member of the Stonington Public Schools community,” and said he began working for the district as a substitute teacher in 1978. After pursuing an education in microbiology and a career in research, he returned to work in the district as a part-time custodian in 2006.

“Gary was an integral part of our district and will be dearly missed,” she said.

“Gary loved coffee and was often seen riding his bike with a cup of coffee in one hand and a handlebar in the other. He would ride his bike to work every day no matter the weather conditions and never missed a day in his seventeen years of service,” Butler added.

She said Piver was a known history buff full of stories about Stonington Borough, greeted people with ready smile and regaled them with tales of his life and college days in Colorado.

“Gary was known to most as being a ‘gentle giant.’ He was a kind and compassionate person to those he worked with at Stonington Public Schools,” Butler said.

Piver’s nephew Josh, a Stonington High graduate, was killed in the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City.