CHRISTINE BANFIELD & JOSEPH RYAN: Virginia vs. Juliana Peres Magalhaes *GUILTY PLEA* & Brendan Banfield for double homicide *GUILTY* (8 Viewers)

Affluent Virginia suburb rocked by mansion murder mystery as nanny faces trial​

Juliana Peres Magalhaes is set to face trial in Fairfax County, Virginia, for second-degree murder in November​

Affluent Virginia suburb rocked by mansion murder mystery as nanny faces trial

A Brazilian au pair charged with murder in connection to a double homicide at her employers' suburban Fairfax County, Virginia, home in February 2023 is set to face trial.

www.foxnews.com

A bucolic Virginia neighborhood. A seemingly normal family of three. A Brazilian au pair. A double murder.

These are all parts of a complex puzzle investigators are still working to determine who killed Christine Banfield — a wife, mother and Fairfax County NICU employee — and Joseph Ryan, the 38-year-old man who showed up at her home armed with a knife, in Herndon, Virginia, in February 2023.

Part of that puzzle is in the process of being solved as Juliana Peres Magalhaes, Banfield's 23-year-old au pair and a Brazilian national, prepares to stand trial for second-degree murder and use of a deadly weapon during the commission of a crime in Ryan's shooting death.

VIRGINIA AU PAIR MURDER: FETISH PLOT, AFFAIR, GUN RANGE TIED TO DOUBLE HOMICIDE AT HOME, PROSECUTORS REVEAL
The mystery began on Feb. 24, 2023, when Magalhaes told police she left Christine and husband Brendan Banfield's home in the 13200 block of Stable Brook Way in Herndon to take their young daughter to the National Zoo. She told authorities that she had begun driving but realized she forgot the lunches she packed for their excursion back inside the house, so she turned around and noticed an unfamiliar car in the driveway.

She then reportedly called Brendan, a former criminal investigative agent for the IRS who had at that point left for work, and told him about the unknown car in their driveway. The pair decided to meet at the Banfields' home and walk inside together, as the Washington Post reported.

Initially, Magalhaes told police that when she and Brendan walked inside, they saw an unknown man, Ryan, holding Christine at knifepoint. She allegedly described him as an intruder. Ryan was apparently fully clothed while Christine was naked in the main bedroom of the house.

It remains unclear exactly what transpired inside the home that Friday morning, but Magalhaes and Brendan apparently both admitted to shooting Ryan while the man was holding a knife to Christine. Ryan died inside the home while Christine suffered stab wounds to the neck and ultimately died in the hospital.

'We believe in justice for both' | Grand Jury indicts au pair in connection to man's death

Juliana Peres Magalhaes, 23, was indicted on charges of second-degree murder and use of a firearm in commission of a felony.

www.wusa9.com

 

[GrandmaBear]

VERDICT IN supposed per Court TV and Yahoo and more!!

 

[GrandmaBear]

to be read in 30 minutes, however, I heard that some minutes ago so probably 20, 25 minutes.

i'd say it has to be guilty, 12 people are not going to acquit this POS.

However, there ARE I think 3 charges they had to decide on.

 

[GrandmaBear]

5 p.m. supposedly, their time, EST I believe. So 21 minutes.

 

[GrandmaBear]

Man are the minutes ticking slowly...

 

[GrandmaBear]

GUILTY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[GrandmaBear]

on ALL COUNTS!!!!!!!! More counts than I thought remained, but guilty on all!!

 

[Tresir]

I was going to post the court live feed but it had more or less finished and they were just talking about the sentencing schedule, which sounded like it would be in May.

ABC article instead.

Brendan Banfield double murder trial: Man found guilty in elaborate plot to get rid of his wife

The former IRS agent was charged with aggravated murder in 2024 following a monthslong investigation.

abcnews.go.com

ABC News​

Brendan Banfield double murder trial: Man found guilty in elaborate plot to get rid of his wife​

Banfield is accused of killing his wife and a stranger to be with his au pair.
ByMeredith Deliso and Cristina Corbin
February 2, 2026, 5:14 PM

7:22
Brendan Banfield testifies in his own defense on Jan. 28, 2026, during his double murder trial in Fairfax County, Virginia.
Pool/ABC News
A Virginia man has been found guilty of killing his wife and a stranger lured to their home under false pretenses in an elaborate plot to get rid of his spouse so he could be with his au pair, with whom he was having an affair.
Brendan Banfield, 40, is accused of stabbing his wife to death in their home in Fairfax County and fatally shooting a man he allegedly "catfished" on a fetish website. Prosecutors said he pretended to be his wife to lure the man to their home for what was believed to be a consensual fake rape scenario in order to frame that stranger for his wife's murder.
The jury deliberated nearly nine hours over two days, starting Friday, before reaching a verdict Monday afternoon, finding him guilty of two counts of aggravated murder. He exhibited little emotion while the verdict was read.
His sentencing has been scheduled for May 8. He faces a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

 

[GrandmaBear]

Guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty. I think it was 4 counts, 2 of aggravated murder, one about a fireamr, one of child endangerment. He will be sentenced later. Nanny will be sentenced I think in a bit over a week, Feb something. Let's pray she doesn't get just time served. I don't like her deal, most don't, but judge can give her ten years, she deserves life though imo.

I couldn't get into this trial at first and never followed it closely but the last part of it, I was a bit more into when he testified. Stupid of him but so full of himself, I'm sure he insisted.

 

[GrandmaBear]

I was going to post the court live feed but it had more or less finished and they were just talking about the sentencing schedule, which sounded like it would be in May.

I didn't hear when they settled on sentencing, were talking March but judge thought might be too early.

She gets sentenced in like a week to ten days, I think in the chat I was in they said Feb 13th, not 100 percent on either date.

Watching him testify, man, I was so disgusted with this guy. He betrayed his wife in every way, shape and form and he did it on the stand too. The other victim, a random stranger.

I did think everything could have been a big stronger from the P, but she did the job. It felt like maybe there were time constraints and things that couldn't be said as well. There are often those rules ahead of a trial and we don't always know what they are.

I really never followed the case all that closely but sure knew about it and tracked it somewhat.

It was a long day waiting for this verdict but I just put up someone covering it and left the tab open and the volume on, it was silent while I did other things and I knew I'd hear it if something happened. Once in awhile I had to come and skip a commercial from YT or something but the channel I was watching just had a live chat but no talking by the channel holder, just a feed and verdict clock timer of the courtroom.

 

[GrandmaBear]

Sentencing is May 8th per Nate.

 

[Regina]

I didn't expect the jury would be out that long.

 

[GrandmaBear]

I didn't expect the jury would be out that long.

Yeah it was a little bit surprising but still wasn't the longest time. I suspect maybe one person was struggling with one charge or something like that OR they wanted to see some things first maybe. I was at the point where I felt if they didn't come back yesterday, and it was late in day and not looking like it thus far, after that worry would have started to increase bit by bit. I knew they wouldn't want to stay another day, no jury does, so still was hoping though and then it came through, or word did that they'd asked for a few more minutes.

One thing I DO like though is I figure his hope was probably increasing the longer they took and so he'd be REALLY crushed when he heard they were coming back I'd imagine...

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Christine Banfield's family speaks for first time since brutal murder, Brendan Banfield's conviction

The family shared a statement with WUSA9 the week after Brendan Banfield was convicted of murdering Christine.

www.wusa9.com

Christine Banfield's family speaks for first time since brutal murder, Brendan Banfield's conviction​

Christine Banfield's family is speaking out for the first time in the nearly three years since she was brutally murdered by her husband, Brendan Banfield.

Christine's family, who is from New York, has never spoken publicly about her murder or the high-profile legal proceedings. But Wednesday, they shared a statement with WUSA9, thanking the prosecutors, investigators and the jury for their work.

"Christine was an honest, faithful, caring, compassionate, helpful person who was dedicated to her family, friends, and patients," the Benson family wrote. "... The lies told about her after her murder were just as painful as her death."

They also shared compassion for Ryan's family. Both Brendan Banfield and Peres Magalhaes admitted to shooting and killing Ryan, but Brendan and his defense claimed he was the one who killed Christine. Ryan's mother, Deirdre Fisher, exclusively spoke with WUSA9 ahead of the trial and said she never believed Ryan would ever be violent.

"He, like Christine, was an innocent victim," the Bensons wrote.

Her family attended the whole trial, wearing butterfly pins. Though they haven't said exactly what the pins symbolize, many people wear them to signify hope and resilience.

"I hope that this verdict gives them some sense of peace and puts them somewhere in the path of healing," Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney Steve Descano said following the verdict.

 

[GrandmaBear]

I think sentencing for Juliana is tomorrow if I remember correctly. Hoping instead of the deal recommendation, the judge gives her the whole ten years. She deserves LIFE.

 

[GrandmaBear]

TEN YEARS! YES!! The most the judge could give!

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Watch the Dateline episode “Temptation” now

Blayne Alexander reports on the 2023 case of Christine Banfield in Fairfax County, Virginia.

www.nbcnews.com

Watch the Dateline episode “Temptation” now​

Christine and Brendan Banfield were busy parents. She was a nurse and he was an I.R.S. agent.

They found the au pair program to be the perfect solution for childcare.

In 2021, the couple hired Juliana Peres Magalhaes from Brazil, to help with their 4-year-old daughter.

One sunny morning in February 2023, instead of a planned trip to the zoo with her au pair, the 4-year-old found herself in the family’s basement while something sinister went on upstairs.

In her parents’ bedroom, her mother Christine fought for her life and a stranger lay dead. Her father got on the phone with 911.

After police arrived, the family’s breathless au pair shared a harrowing story with them outside in the driveway.

But as investigators would soon learn, nothing was as it seemed.

To find out what happened, watch the full episode “Temptation,” available now on Peacock.

You can also watch on the NBC app or listen to the full episode on our podcast.

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

https://www.dcnewsnow.com/news/local-news/brendan-banfields-defense-team-files-to-have-guilty-verdict-set-aside-in-au-pair-affair-double-murder-case/

Brendan Banfield’s defense team files to have guilty verdict set aside in ‘au pair affair’ double murder case​

Brendan Banfield’s defense team has filed a motion to set aside the guilty verdict in the “au pair affair” double murder trial, a little more than a week before his sentencing date where he faces a mandatory life sentence.

His defense filed the motion Wednesday, according to online court records.

Arguments over the motion are expected to be heard during the sentencing hearing next Friday, May 8, at 11 a.m.

The motion filed by the defense alleges that Banfield’s silence was permitted to be used as evidence of his guilt in violation of his constitutional rights, and that the Commonwealth knowingly failed to correct false testimony made by Banfield’s former supervisor, and that the au pair’s testimony was permitted to be used as evidence against him despite a violation of his right to the exclusion of witnesses.

In their response to the motion, prosecutors wrote, “the presentation of T. Patrick Smith was objected to on grounds of surprise and failure to disclose the name of the witness pre-trial, but not on any suggestion of a violation of the rule on witnesses; and the Defendant’s own cross examination elicited the responses from the witness, Ms. Peres Magalhaes, which continued unchecked despite the repeated opportunities to impeach or call to the court’s attention the purported false testimony.”

 

[SheWhoMustNotBeNamed]

Oh, you thought that was bad?

Convicted and cashing in? Au pair in Virginia murder plot tries to sell her story

Juliana Peres Magalhães testified she was seeking a streaming deal for at least $10,000. But Virginia’s “Son of Sam” law could direct funds to victims in the Brendan Banfield case.

www.nbcwashington.com

Convicted and cashing in? Au pair in Virginia murder plot tries to sell her story​

The Northern Virginia au pair who had an affair with her boss and helped scheme to kill his wife and a stranger may have a good chance of selling her story. But the law limits whether she can cash in.

Juliana Peres Magalhães testified about trying to reach a deal in Hollywood.

“I had some people, I'd say, cellmates, that talk to me about it,” she said on the stand in January. “They were more, I would say, more smart about it, I guess, and telling me to negotiate.”

Peres Magalhães, who took a plea deal and cooperated with prosecutors, told jurors she was fielding calls from producers from behind bars.

“They were thinking about $10,000, which could be about $55,000 in our money. It helps, and it's good, but I want to negotiate. I want more than this, because if I sign the contract, I end up losing other opportunities to make more money,” she said, reading a letter she wrote.

Film and legal experts told News4 the former au pair’s story is likely in high demand in Hollywood as interest in true crime surges – but reaching a deal could put her in a courtroom again.

News4 asked a longtime prosecutor in Northern Virginia if Peres Magalhães could profit from telling her story after pleading guilty to a crime.

“As of right now, the answer to that question would be yes,” said Bryan Porter, commonwealth’s attorney for Alexandria.

Peres Magalhães may not know the funds may not be hers to keep, said Porter.

“There is a provision in Virginia law that is proverbially known as the ‘Son of Sam’ law that could prohibit her from profiting off of any kind of media deal,” he explained.

“If the commonwealth’s attorney's office files a motion under the provisions of the ‘Son of Sam’ law, and if a judge finds good cause to enact an injunction against her, then basically any money that she would receive as a result of any media deal would be placed into an escrow account,” he said.

Funds could go to the victims’ families, court costs and lawyers’ fees.

Any streaming deal Peres Magalhães reaches could set off a first-of-its-kind case in Virginia.

“Son of Sam laws” are named after 1970s serial killer David Berkowitz, who called himself the “Son of Sam.” The idea is simple: Criminals shouldn’t profit from their crimes through book deals or filming rights. But free speech concerns come into play.

In New York, that tension went all the way to the Supreme Court in a case tied to the book that inspired the movie “Goodfellas,” about Mafia associate Henry Hill.

The state tried to seize the book’s profits under its “Son of Sam” law. But the Supreme Court said the law went too far and violated the First Amendment.


So, would producers really reach a streaming deal with Peres Magalhães? And how much could she get?

“If this would have been 10 years ago, I would have said, ‘There's zero chance she's getting paid. There’s zero chance she’s getting any approval.’ But now the landscape has changed,” said Callif, the Los Angeles attorney.

She has worked on a number of true crime projects, including “Making a Murderer” and “Burden of Proof.”

Callif said not only could Peres Magalhães get a deal; she could have some creative control.

“Usually a compromise will be like, well, ‘You have an opportunity to review the cuts and maybe sometimes there's an approval for factual accuracy. Like, if we got something really wrong here, we'll correct it,’” she said.

News4 asked Callif for her reaction to Peres Magalhães’ testimony that a producer offered her $10,000.


News4 reached out to Peres Magalhães, her defense attorney and Netflix about a potential streaming deal and did not hear back. Fairfax County prosecutors, who brought the case against Peres Magalhães and Brendan Banfield, did not comment on what they will do if she reaches a deal.

Peres Magalhães remains in prison, serving a 10-year sentence for manslaughter. When she was sentenced in February, her attorney said he expected she will spend about four years behind bars. She was expected to receive credit for the roughly 2 1/2 years she spent in prison after her arrest, plus credit for good behavior.

Brendan Banfield is set to be sentenced in early June.