Au Pair Details Elaborate Murder-for-Love Plot in Court
A Brazilian au pair has given crucial testimony against her former employer and lover in a chilling double homicide case in the United States. Juliana Peres Magalhães told the court the killings were part of a calculated scheme to eliminate the man's wife, Christine Banfield.
The case centres on Brendan Banfield, an IRS agent charged with the aggravated murder of his wife and another man, Joseph Ryan, at the family home in northern Virginia in 2023. He has pleaded not guilty and faces life imprisonment if convicted.
A Staged Crime Scene and a Web of Deceit
Prosecutors allege that Banfield and Magalhães, who was the family's au pair, were in a relationship. To remove Christine Banfield, they allegedly impersonated her on a fetish social media site. Over a month, they orchestrated an elaborate scenario with Ryan, a stranger, arranging what was presented as a rape fantasy.
Magalhães testified that after luring Ryan to the home, they killed both him and Christine Banfield. They then staged the scene to make it appear that Banfield had shot an intruder – Ryan – who was allegedly attacking his wife with a knife.
Magalhães, originally from São Paulo's outskirts, was initially charged with murder. However, after cooperating with investigators, she pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in 2024. Her sentencing will follow the conclusion of Banfield's trial, and her lawyers suggest she may be sentenced to time already served, depending on her cooperation.
Defence Challenges Credibility of Key Witness
Banfield's defence attorney, John Carroll, aggressively questioned Magalhães's motives for changing her story. In his opening statements, he claimed she maintained her innocence for a year before altering her account after losing faith in her own lawyer.
On Wednesday, Carroll pressed Magalhães on why she finally accepted a plea deal, noting it occurred only after Banfield's arrest and following a health scare that hospitalised her. He presented letters she wrote from jail expressing deep despair, quoting one line: "No strength. No courage. No hope."
When Carroll asked if she was unconcerned with telling the truth between her arrest in October 2023 and her confession in October 2024, Magalhães responded, "I withheld the truth for a long time, just to myself... It was a lot for me to deal with. There is only so much your brain can take before your body starts responding to the stress as well."
Banfield faces additional charges of child abuse and felony child cruelty, as his four-year-old daughter was present in the house on the morning of the killings. These charges will be addressed during the ongoing aggravated murder trial.
