Brendan Banfield, a former IRS agent accused of conspiring with his child’s au pair to kill his wife and frame another man, has been found guilty.
A Virginia jury on Monday convicted Banfield, 40, on two counts of aggravated murder, one count of using a firearm in committing a felony and child endangerment after several days of deliberation. He was originally charged with four counts of aggravated murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony in connection with the killings.
The couple’s daughter, who was 4 at the time, was in the home at the time of the slayings, prosecutors said.
During the trial, Banfield admitted he cheated on his wife, 37-year-old Christine, with Brazilian au pair Juliana Peres Magalhaes, but denied he conspired with her to commit the slayings or that he was planning to leave his wife.
Magalhaes called 911 on Feb. 24, 2023 to say a friend was hurt before Banfield took the phone and told the dispatcher an “unknown male” had entered their home and attacked his wife. He said he shot the alleged intruder after Christine was stabbed.
Christine was found dead by police in an upstairs bedroom. A man named Joe Ryan, who had been shot, was found dead nearby.
Months later, Peres Magalhaes, 25, was arrested and eventually pleaded guilty to manslaughter before testifying against Brendan Banfield last month. She was sentenced to time served as part of the plea to testify against Banfield.
According to the nanny, Banfield feared his wife would file for divorce and set up a phony account on a fetish dating website under his wife’s name to catfish and lure Ryan, 39, to the house for a consensual but violent role-play scenario.
Banfield testified he found Ryan attacking Christine with a knife before Peres Magalhaes shot him.
Peres Magalhaes testified Banfield shot Ryan and stabbed his wife after “intervening” before staging the crime scene.
He is expected to be sentenced to life in prison. Sentencing was scheduled for May 8.
