A husband and his family's au pair have been charged with the brutal murders of his wife and another man in a case prosecutors allege was a meticulously planned scheme to cover up their affair.
The Grisly Scene and Initial Claims
On the morning of February 24, 2023, a violent incident unfolded in the primary bedroom of a home in Herndon, northern Virginia. Christine Banfield, 37, was found stabbed to death. Joseph Ryan, 38, a man unknown to the family, was discovered with fatal gunshot wounds.
Initially, the homeowner, Brendan Banfield, 39, and the family's 25-year-old Brazilian au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, told authorities a harrowing story. They claimed Ryan was an intruder who had broken in and stabbed Christine Banfield. They stated they then each shot Ryan in what they portrayed as an act of self-defence.
The Prosecution's Catfishing Theory
However, investigators soon pieced together a very different narrative. Prosecutors argue that Banfield and Magalhaes, who had been romantically involved since the year before the killings, orchestrated an elaborate double murder.
According to a statement Magalhaes gave after her arrest, she and Brendan Banfield created a fake social media account in Christine Banfield's name on a platform for people with sexual fetishes. Through this account, they allegedly lured Joseph Ryan to the home, arranging a meeting that was supposed to involve a knife.
The prosecution's theory is that the couple then staged the scene to make it appear Ryan had attacked Christine Banfield before they 'heroically' intervened. "With 12 different homicide detectives, there were 24 different theories," prosecutor Eric Clingan said last year. "Now, one theory."
Contested Evidence and Legal Proceedings
Not all evidence supports the prosecution's catfishing claim. A former digital forensic examiner for the Fairfax County Police, Brendan Miller, testified that his analysis of dozens of devices led him to conclude Christine Banfield had contacted Ryan herself. This finding was peer-reviewed and affirmed by a team at the University of Alabama.
Banfield's attorney, John Carroll, has argued that investigators who questioned the catfishing theory faced professional repercussions. "It is a theory in search of facts rather than a series of facts supporting a theory," Carroll stated in court.
Both Banfield and Magalhaes were arrested between 2023 and 2024. In 2024, Magalhaes pleaded guilty to a downgraded charge of manslaughter after providing her statement to officials. Brendan Banfield continues to deny the charges against him.
In a disturbing detail, the couple's young daughter was present in the house on the morning of the killings. Consequently, Banfield also faces additional charges of child abuse and felony child cruelty, which he denies. His trial for aggravated murder is pending.
