Double Murder Plot
Virginia Man Faces Sentencing for Double Murder Scheme in Affair with Brazilian Au Pair
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Brendan Banfield, a former IRS special agent from Virginia, faces mandatory life in prison at his sentencing hearing on June 5, 2026. A jury convicted him in February of murdering his wife, Christine Banfield, and Joseph Ryan — a stranger lured to the family's home as a planned fall guy — in a scheme he allegedly hatched with the family's Brazilian au pair, according to ABC 4.
The case, widely dubbed the "Au Pair Affair," drew national attention for its chilling details: a fake profile on a fetish website, a 14-page love letter written in broken Portuguese, and a 4-year-old girl locked in the basement while her mother was killed upstairs, KTBS reported.
A Fetish Website Used to Lure a Victim
Prosecutors say Banfield and his mistress, au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães, created a fake profile on FetLife — a sexual fetish social network — impersonating Christine Banfield. The profile was used to invite Joseph Ryan to the home for an encounter on February 24, 2023. Ryan, 39, had no idea he was being set up, according to WFMZ.
That morning, Banfield left home at 7:30 AM, claiming he had a work meeting. Ryan arrived at 7:50 AM. By 8:15 AM, Ryan had been shot and Christine Banfield had been stabbed multiple times in the neck. Juliana called 911 at 9:11 AM — after two earlier hangups — KULR8 reported.
Former IRS Agent Claimed He Was Saving His Wife
Banfield maintained his innocence throughout the three-week trial. He testified that he returned home to find a man with a knife standing over Christine. "I just saw a man with a knife over my wife... I did what I had to do," he told the jury. The defense argued Christine herself had set up the encounter.
Prosecutors pushed back hard. Digital forensics showed the FetLife accounts were accessed from devices inside the home — at times when Christine was documented to be elsewhere. Banfield's background as an IRS Criminal Investigation agent, they argued, gave him the skills to try to cover his tracks, according to WANDTV.
Au Pair Testifies, Gets 10 Years for Manslaughter
Juliana Peres Magalhães, 24, became the prosecution's star witness after striking a plea deal. She testified that Banfield told her he needed to "get rid" of Christine so they could be together. "I was a monster," she said in a statement. In April 2026, she was sentenced to 10 years in prison for manslaughter, plus 2 years of probation, according to QC News.
The defense called the deal a "sweetheart plea" that gave Juliana a reason to lie. But a handwritten, 14-page love letter from Banfield to Juliana — written in broken Portuguese and referencing their "future life" together — seriously damaged his credibility with jurors. The jury deliberated just 9 hours before finding him guilty on all counts.
A Daughter Left Behind, a Life Sentence Ahead
Christine Banfield was a 37-year-old pediatric ICU nurse at Inova Fairfax Hospital. Joseph Ryan's mother, Deirdre Fisher, has fought to clear her son's name. "He wasn't some creepy fetish guy; he was a man who was duped by monsters," she said, according to reporting on the case.
The couple's daughter, Valerie, was just 4 years old on the day of the murders. She was reportedly locked in the basement while both killings happened. That detail led to Banfield's additional conviction for felony child endangerment, Daily Item reported. Virginia law mandates two life terms for aggravated murder — meaning Banfield has virtually no chance of ever leaving prison.
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