Virginia au pair’s jailhouse letters show shifting loyalties in ex‑IRS agent Brendan Banfield double‑murder trial
In opening stages of the aggravated murder trial of former federal agent Brendan Banfield — who also faces child‑abuse and felony child‑cruelty counts tied to his then‑4‑year‑old daughter being in the house — Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is cooperating, testified that she and Banfield impersonated his wife on a sexual‑fetish site to lure Joseph Ryan to the home, then killed Ryan and Christine Banfield and staged the scene as an intruder attack. Magalhães read jailhouse letters that alternately professed love and offered to take the blame while earlier writing she would not “spend my life in prison for something I didn’t do,” a contradiction the defense used to attack her credibility amid questions about a theory‑driven investigation after a forensic examiner and a lead detective were reassigned.
📌 Key Facts
- Opening statements in Brendan Banfield’s aggravated murder trial are scheduled to begin Tuesday; 12 jurors and four alternates have been seated, court will run Monday–Thursday starting at 10 a.m., and the trial is expected to last about four weeks.
- Banfield faces aggravated murder charges and separate child abuse and felony child‑cruelty counts tied to his then‑4‑year‑old daughter being in the house during the killings.
- Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter in late 2024 after originally being charged with murder and is cooperating with prosecutors; her ultimate sentence will depend on how prosecutors assess her cooperation after Banfield’s trial.
- Magalhães testified that she and Banfield impersonated his wife on a sexual‑fetish social media site to lure Joseph Ryan, spent about a month arranging an elaborate rape scenario to 'get rid of' Christine Banfield, then said they killed Ryan and Christine and staged the scene to look like they had shot an intruder attacking Christine with a knife.
- A former Fairfax County digital forensics examiner, Brendan Miller, testified his analysis showed Christine Banfield — not a fake account — connected with Ryan; a University of Alabama evidence team peer‑reviewed and affirmed his findings. Miller was later transferred out of the digital forensics unit and the original lead detective was reassigned after pushing back on the catfishing theory, which the defense cites as evidence of a theory‑driven investigation.
- Magalhães read jailhouse letters in court that show conflicting loyalties — including notes saying 'I love you more than anything' and offering to 'take the blame for the both of us,' alongside an earlier note saying 'I’m not willing to spend my life in prison for something I didn’t do' — and defense attorneys used those letters and her expressions of depression and hopelessness to attack her credibility.
- Magalhães testified that after Banfield’s family stopped paying her jail expenses, unnamed news producers began funding her commissary and other needs in exchange for rights to her story and that she has discussed a potential book or streaming deal; she said she accepted the manslaughter plea because it was 'the right thing to do' and described ongoing feelings of shame, guilt and sadness.
- Prosecutors' central theory is that Banfield impersonated his wife online to lure Ryan and then staged the killings to look like self‑defense; defense attorney John Carroll calls that account 'a theory in search of facts' and is challenging the credibility of key testimony and investigative choices.
📊 Relevant Data
In cases of intimate partner homicide, the majority (67%-80%) involve prior physical abuse of the female by the male before the murder, regardless of which partner is killed.
Risk Factors for Femicide in Abusive Relationships: Results From a Multisite Case Control Study — American Journal of Public Health
When an abusive partner has access to a firearm, the risk of intimate partner homicide increases by five times, and firearms are used in over 50% of such homicides in the US.
Understanding and Addressing Intimate Partner Homicide — Rockefeller Institute of Government
The rate of intimate partner violence for women is nearly 3 times higher among those in the lowest income quartile compared to those in the highest income quartile.
Domestic Violence - The Justice Gap Report — Legal Services Corporation
Nearly 1 in 5 prime-age men with high-prestige jobs (18%) have had extramarital sex, compared with 7% of men in upper-middle prestige jobs and lower rates in less prestigious occupations.
Men With Prestigious Jobs Are More Likely to Cheat — Institute for Family Studies
Higher-income individuals demonstrate increased infidelity rates, with educational attainment correlating with 15-20% higher infidelity, contrary to assumptions of financial stress driving cheating.
Age, Gender, and Income: The Demographics of Infidelity You Need to Know — InvestigateSC
📰 Source Timeline (5)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Magalhães read multiple jailhouse letters in court, including one telling Banfield, “I love you more than anything,” and another to his mother offering to “take the blame for the both of us.”
- Those letters conflict with an earlier note in which she wrote, “I’m not willing to spend my life in prison for something I didn’t do,” giving the defense fresh ammunition on credibility.
- Magalhães testified that after Banfield’s family stopped paying her jail expenses, unnamed news producers began funding her commissary and "other needs" in exchange for rights to her story, and that she has discussed a potential book or Netflix deal.
- She told the jury she accepted a manslaughter plea because it was “the right thing to do” and described her ongoing feelings of “shame and guilt and sadness.”
- Juliana Peres Magalhães, the Brazilian au pair who pled guilty to manslaughter, has now taken the stand and testified that she and Brendan Banfield impersonated his wife on a sexual‑fetish social media site and spent about a month arranging an elaborate rape scenario with Joseph Ryan to 'get rid of' Christine Banfield.
- Magalhães testified that after luring Ryan to the house, she and Banfield killed both Ryan and Christine and staged the scene to look like they had shot an intruder attacking Christine with a knife.
- Defense attorney John Carroll used Magalhães’ jailhouse letters expressing depression and hopelessness to attack her credibility, arguing she only changed her story and implicated Banfield after being arrested and losing faith in her first lawyer.
- The piece reaffirms that Magalhães was initially charged with murder but pled down to manslaughter in 2024 in exchange for cooperation, and that her ultimate sentence will depend on how prosecutors assess that cooperation at the end of Banfield’s trial.
- Confirms that 12 jurors and four alternates have been seated and that opening statements are expected to begin Tuesday.
- Restates prosecutors’ theory that Banfield, impersonating his wife online, lured Joseph Ryan to the home via a fetish website and staged the killings to look like self‑defense.
- Reaffirms that Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter in late 2024 and is expected to testify against Banfield as an eyewitness to the alleged plot.
- Specifies that court sessions in Banfield’s trial will run Monday through Thursday, starting at 10 a.m., and that the trial is expected to last four weeks.
- Quotes defense attorney John Carroll dismissing prosecutors’ account as “a theory in search of facts rather than a series of facts supporting a theory.”
- Confirms opening statements are scheduled to begin Tuesday in Brendan Banfield’s aggravated murder trial.
- Details that Magalhães has already pleaded guilty to manslaughter and is cooperating, having told investigators she and Banfield created a sexual‑fetish social‑media account in Christine Banfield’s name to lure Joseph Ryan to the house.
- Reports testimony from former Fairfax County digital forensic examiner Brendan Miller that his analysis showed Christine Banfield, not a fake account, connected with Ryan; a University of Alabama evidence team peer‑reviewed and affirmed his findings.
- Notes that Miller was transferred out of the Fairfax digital forensics unit in late 2024 and that the original lead detective was reassigned after pushing back on the catfishing theory, raising defense claims about a theory‑driven investigation.
- Specifies that Banfield will simultaneously face child abuse and felony child‑cruelty counts, tied to having his then‑4‑year‑old daughter in the house during the killings.