CORNELIUS, N.C. -- Less than 12 hours after a fatal hit and run car wreck, Cornelius Police were able to track down the driver and charge him with murder.

Michael Anthony Petrone, 36, of Huntersville, is charged with second degree murder, felony hit and run, driving while impaired and driving with a revoked license.

One man was killed while walking along Catawba Avenue near Silver Quay Drive in Cornelius around 1:30 a.m. Sunday.

Police said the Petrone never stopped.

Alter Sunday morning, a badly damaged black Cadillac was found parked at a Huntersville apartment complex, less than 2 miles away from where the wreck happened.

Petrone was arrested shortly after officers located the car.

Investigators haven't released the name of the victim.

Friends of the victim said he wasn't from the Charlotte area, but moved here within the last month. They said he had just graduated college in May, and accepted a job in Charlotte this summer.

Saturday night, a group of friends were at a nearby bar drinking. They all decided to walk home from the bar, and were walking along Catawba Avenue when he was hit.

Mecklenburg County Jail arrest records show Petrone was arrested last February for driving with a revoked license.