Banfield sentenced to life; au pair receives 10 years for double murder
Banfield sentenced to life; au pair gets 10 years for double murder scheme.
Event / Security
Brendan Banfield Murder Sentencing
Former IRS law enforcement officer Brendan Banfield was sentenced to life without parole for the February 2023 murders of his wife Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan in Virginia. Banfield and Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães conspired to kill Christine and frame Ryan. Magalhães testified Banfield wanted to marry her but needed to 'get rid of' his wife first. The pair lured Ryan to their home using a fake online encounter. Banfield shot Ryan and stabbed Christine; Magalhães fired a second shot. Banfield was also convicted of child endangerment as their 4-year-old daughter was present. Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter and received 10 years.
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2026-08-16 to 2026-11-13 · UTC publication dates
Coverage begins 6 Jun, 03:31 UTC
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What happened
Jurors convict Banfield of child endangerment during murders
In February, jurors convicted Brendan Banfield of child endangerment in addition to murder charges. The conviction was based on the fact that the couple's 4-year-old daughter was home in the house during the commission of both murders.
Brendan Banfield sentenced to life in prison for double murder
Brendan Banfield, a former IRS law enforcement officer, was sentenced to life in prison without parole on Friday for the murder of his wife Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan. The sentencing was mandatory in Virginia for an aggravated murder conviction. Judge Penney Azcarate also sentenced Banfield to an additional five years for child endangerment and three more years on a firearms charge. The judge characterized Banfield's actions as evil and calculated.
Christine Banfield murdered in scheme involving Brazilian au pair
Christine Banfield, a pediatric intensive care nurse, was murdered on February 24, 2023, in Herndon, Virginia. Her husband Brendan Banfield and the family's Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães set up a scheme to kill her. Banfield shot Christine with a gun and then stabbed her with a knife. The crime occurred while the couple's 4-year-old daughter was in the house.
Joseph Ryan murdered in lured encounter at Banfield residence
Joseph Ryan was murdered on February 24, 2023, when he was lured to the Banfield home in Herndon, Virginia under false pretenses. Brendan Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhães had impersonated Christine Banfield on a fetish website to lure Ryan to the house for a staged sexual encounter involving a knife. Brendan Banfield shot Ryan, and when Ryan continued to move, Magalhães fired a second fatal shot.
Juliana Peres Magalhães sentenced to 10 years in prison for manslaughter
Juliana Peres Magalhães, a Brazilian au pair who was 21 years old when she began working for the Banfield family in 2021, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and agreed to testify against Brendan Banfield. She was sentenced to 10 years in prison. During trial testimony, she revealed that Banfield had told her he wanted to marry her and have children but needed to 'get rid of' his wife first, as a divorce would result in his wife having more money and because he wanted custody of their daughter.
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