Matthews homicide suspects in Texas waive extradition

Two suspects who are facing homicide-related charges in Matthews have waived extradition from Texas, authorities said Friday.

Investigators are still trying to determine whether the Feb. 22 Matthews homicide is tied to a drug-related triple homicide that was discovered in Charlotte on Feb. 24, Matthews Officer Tim Aycock said.

The same man, 19-year-old Emmanuel Jesus Rangel, has been charged with first-degree murder in both the Charlotte and Matthews cases. One of the Charlotte victims, Mirjana Puhar, was a contestant last year on “America’s Next Top Model.”

Edward Sanchez, 19, was charged with first-degree murder, and Emily Ann Isaacs, 18, was charged with accessory after the fact to first-degree murder in the Matthews case.

On the night of Feb. 24, about four hours after the bodies of the three Charlotte victims were discovered, Texas state troopers pulled over a speeding car near Houston. Sanchez and Isaacs were inside.

Charlotte-Mecklenburg police had flagged the car’s license plate as well as the people in the vehicle to be held in connection with a triple homicide in Charlotte, a Texas Highway Patrol spokesman told The Observer last week. Isaacs and Sanchez have not been charged in the Charlotte case.

Rangel made a brief first appearance in Mecklenburg County Court last week for the Charlotte case.

Sanchez and Isaacs are expected to be returned to North Carolina this month, Aycock said, but it is not yet known when that will happen. Authorities are still trying to determine the relationship between Isaacs and Sanchez, whose car they were in, and why they were in Texas.

“A lot will hopefully unfold when they get back here,” Aycock said.

In the Matthews case, two men were shot inside a car at a motel parking lot off of Independence Boulevard. Rosool Jaleel Harrell, 22, of Charlotte, was killed. The other victim, whom police have not identified, remains in an area hospital in critical but stable condition, Aycock said.

In the Charlotte case, CMPD said the suspect knew the victims, Puhar, 19, Jonathan Cosme Alvarado, 23, and Jusmar Isiah Gonzaga-Garcia, 21. CMPD officials said Friday that they had no updates on their case.

The victims were found in a house on Norris Avenue off of Graham Street about a mile north of uptown Charlotte.

This story was originally published March 6, 2015 at 2:51 PM with the headline "Matthews homicide suspects in Texas waive extradition."