Man who had affair with Brazilian nanny will be sentenced for double homicide plot

Brendan Banfield during his trial for double homicide, in January 2026.
AP/Tom Brenner/File
A man from the state of Virginia, in the United States, who had an extramarital relationship with the family's Brazilian nanny, Juliana Peres Magalhães, is expected to be sentenced this Friday (5) for the murder of his wife and a man lured to the couple's home to serve as a scapegoat for the crime.
Brendan Banfield, a former investigative agent linked to the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS), claimed to have killed Joseph Ryan after surprising him attacking his wife on the morning of February 24, 2023.
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Juliana Magalhães pleaded guilty to manslaughter after agreeing to testify against Banfield. After his trial, she was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Prosecutors claim that Banfield and Juliana set up an ambush for Ryan as part of a plan to get rid of Christine Banfield, a nurse specializing in pediatric intensive care.
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Banfield could be sentenced to life in prison. In addition to the murder charges, he was found guilty by a jury in February of endangering a child, as the couple's daughter, then 4 years old, was in the house during the murders.
During the trial, Juliana Magalhães stated that Banfield said he wanted to marry her and have children, but that he needed to "get rid" of his wife first.
According to the Brazilian woman, he did not want to get a divorce because he believed the woman would have more money than him and because he wanted to get custody of the daughter. Juliana was 21 years old when she started working for the Banfield family, in 2021.
She told the jurors that the two posed as Christine Banfield on a website focused on sexual fetishes. Through the platform, they lured Ryan to the family home in Herndon, Virginia, under the pretext of a sexual encounter involving a knife.
Juliana Peres Magalhães filmed the day the murder took place in a US mansion
AP/Fairfex County Police
According to the statement, the objective was to make it appear that Ryan was a violent intruder who had entered the residence.
Juliana stated that, on the day of the crimes, she waited in a car outside the house with the Banfields' daughter. When Ryan arrived, she called Brendan Banfield, who was waiting at a nearby McDonald's restaurant.
The two took the child to the basement and then went to the bedroom, where they found Ryan.
According to the report, Banfield shot Ryan and then stabbed Christine Banfield with the knife the man had brought to the meeting. Upon realizing that Ryan was still moving, Juliana fired a second shot, which killed him.

Source: G1