ST. LOUIS • A homeless man has been charged with dealing “K2” last month in downtown St. Louis about the time hundreds of people — most of them homeless — began overdosing on the synthetic marijuana.

John Darryel White, 56, who is listed as homeless in court records, was charged Thursday with a felony count of delivery or manufacture of an imitation controlled substance. White was not in custody Tuesday .

Charges say the St. Louis police department’s real-time crime center, which monitors surveillance cameras downtown, observed a suspected drug deal about 4:45 p.m. Nov. 9 outside the New Life Evangelistic Center in the 1400 block of Locust Street. Police said White appeared to have sold a rolled cigarette to another man, who told police he had just bought K2.

White was among three men arrested that day downtown. It was not immediately clear if the others, 26 and 52, had been charged.