( CNN ) Mirjana Puhar , a recent contestant on `` America 's Next Top Model , '' was found dead in a triple homicide Tuesday in Charlotte , North Carolina , according to police reports . The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department responded to a call Tuesday evening that three people appeared to be dead in a Charlotte home . Officers discovered the bodies of Puhar , 19 , Jonathan Cosme Alvarado , 23 , and Jusmar Isiah Gonzaga-Garcia , 21 . Puhar appeared on `` America 's Next Top Model '' Cycle 21 , the most recent season of the popular reality TV show hosted by supermodel Tyra Banks . Emmanuel Jesus Rangel , 19 , was quickly identified as a suspect in the slayings , brought into police custody and charged with three counts of first-degree homicide . He is in the custody of the Mecklenburg County Sheriff 's Office . Police said in a press release that it appears the victims and Rangel knew one another and the `` incident was drug related . '' Rangel was also charged in connection with a homicide that took place in Matthews , North Carolina , on Sunday , police said . Puhar was a Serbian refugee who arrived in the United States along with her family at the age of 5 , according to a profile in The Charlotte Observer . The 5 ' 9 1/2 '' beauty began modeling at 12 . She attended high school in the Charlotte area and dropped out at 16 to her parents ' dismay , she told The Observer : `` I was a wild child , '' she said . `` I went out , had fun , partied , whatever -- I did n't really have the best influences around me . '' She later earned her GED just before being cast in `` America 's Next Top Model . '' Puhar was eliminated in the 10th episode of the show last year . After news of her death surfaced , Banks as well as fans and friends took to social media to remember her and express their sadness .
Former `` America 's Next Top Model '' contestant Mirjana Puhar was found dead Tuesday . Her body was found along with two others in a Charlotte , North Carolina , home . A suspect has been arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree homicide .