[Hero image shows two of the victims, far left]
Deah Shaddy Barakat, 23, Yusor Mohammad Abu-Salha, 21, and Razan Mohammad Abu-Salha, 19, died from gunshot wounds after a 46-year-old male, Stephen Hicks stormed their apartment.
He has been arrested on suspicion of first degree murder.
On his Facebook page, Hicks describes himself as an atheist, and regularly posted images that condemn all religions.
Hicks handed himself into police on Tuesday night following the attacks, and he appeared in court the following morning.
Although it is unclear exactly why Hicks killed his neighbours in the Chapel Hill area, the father of one of the victims has claimed this is a ‘hate crime,’ adding that Hicks had picked on his daughter and husband previously.
Mr Barakat was believed to be a student at the University of North Carolina, and had spoken out against religion based violence on his twitter page.
‘It’s so freaking sad to hear people saying we should ‘kill Jews’ or ‘kill Palestinians’. As if that’s going to solve anything’ he wrote on Twitter.