Husband Charged In Murder Of Wife & Another Man - But His Affair With Young Au Pair Changes Things...

True crime enthusiasts’ jaws will be on the floor over the wild homicide case coming out of Fairfax County, Virginia. A 39-year-old man has been charged in the deaths of his wife and another man this week — after the couple’s nanny was arrested for one of the killings!

On Monday, the Fairfax County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office announced that Brendan Banfield (top inset) was indicted for the aggravated murders of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan following a 19-month investigation and “new information recently obtained by the detectives in this case.” The husband allegedly stabbed his 37-year-old wife to death and shot the 38-year-old man at their home in February 2023.

And get this! The charges came nearly a year after the family’s au pair, 23-year-old Juliana Peres Magalhaes (bottom inset), was charged with murder and the use of a firearm in the commission of a felony in Joseph’s death! The same au pair Brendan was having an affair with! Buckle up! We have a lot to unpack with this case.

According to The Washington Post, Juliana told the detectives she left Christine and Brendan’s home in Herndon to take their then-4-year-old daughter to the National Zoo. The wife was still at the residence, while the husband, a criminal investigative agent for the IRS, had left for work already. But on the way, she realized she had left their lunches in the refrigerator and turned around to head back home to get them. As Juliana looked back at the house, she saw a man walk in. The nanny claimed she called Christine, who did not answer.

Juliana then called Brendan to tell him about the man. After he arrived at the residence, Juliana and the daughter went inside. Per the Post, officials said in court that the au pair put the girl in the basement before following Brendan up the stairs. What did they allegedly find? Julianna told cops Joseph was bending over a naked Christine with a knife to her throat in the main bedroom. Meanwhile, Brendan had a gun pointed at Joseph.

Juliana claimed Brendan shot Ryan once while Ryan stabbed Christine. He then allegedly told the nanny to get a Glock from the safe in the bedroom closet, and she fired the gun at Joseph. Huh? If Ryan had a gun, why would he ask Juliana to grab another one and shoot? Did he have no more ammo? Hmm. Ultimately, Joseph died inside the house while Christine suffered stab wounds to the neck and passed away in the hospital.

What actually transpired in the home that day became a big mystery from there – one investigators were determined to solve. When the Fairfax County police began to investigate, the things they uncovered were shocking! For starters, on the day of the murders, cops told reporters during a news conference that someone inside the home called 911 that morning. Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said dispatch first received a call from Juliana’s phone at 7:47 a.m. Dispatchers heard a guttural moan and then nothing. She hung up. Odd… Per court records obtained by the Post, a minute later, two more attempts to call were made within seconds of each other.

One final call was made at 8:02 a.m., with Juliana pleading for help. Brendan took over the phone call, saying he shot a man in his home because the intruder stabbed his wife. When officers arrived at the home minutes later, they discovered an “appalling scene.” Joseph was lying on the Banfield’s bedroom floor while Christine was bleeding from the stab wounds on her neck. As we mentioned, they died.

Already Brendan and Juliana’s actions are suspicious, right? That was just the beginning. Police uncovered a lot more questionable details about their story from there. Davis noted there were no signs of forced entry and that “everyone inside the home” was “known to each other.” Wait… So Joseph knew them?

Here is the deal. According to the Post, prosecutors claimed in court docs that Juliana and Brendan were having an affair that Christine had no idea about! Their romantic relationship began months before the killings. Authorities found “intimate” photos of the duo together. Just weeks before the double homicide, they went to a shooting range. Not your average rendezvous between two lovers, huh? Following the killings, police said Juliana moved into the main bedroom of the home where a framed photo of them was found on the nightstand next to the bed.

So the wife is murdered and Brendan has the mistress take her spot? Talk about suspicious! What’s more? Within eight days of the murders, the two got new cell phones. A search warrant affidavit states that the nanny created a new iCloud account, and Brendan deleted his account history.

Police further discovered a computer at the Banfield home was connected to a sexual fetish website called FetLife. Joseph was messaging a user named Annastasia9, where they discussed rough sex such as blood play – where one person deliberately cuts another. As for Annastasia9’s identity? It is unknown. However, prosecutor Eric Clingan said the account that Joseph was messaging with was maintained on Christine’s computer and the profile featured a pic of her in a bathing suit – despite not finding “one iota of evidence that she was into knife play, binding, BDSM.”

Eventually, Joseph and the user decided to meet up one day in February. In fact, it was the same morning Christine and Joseph were killed! Per an affidavit, Brendan was supposed to show up for work at 7:30 a.m. but sat in the parking lot of a nearby McDonald’s until Juliana called him at 7:37 a.m. At the same time, Joseph pulled up to the Banfield home for the meetup with Annastasia9. And we all know what allegedly happened from there. From what it sounds like, Juliana and Brendan allegedly created a whole elaborate ruse to kill Christina and Joseph.

Crazy!!

Ultimately, Juliana was arrested and charged with second-degree murder. She did admit to shooting Ryan — but insisted it was self-defense as he posed a threat to her employers. Hmm. Her trial is scheduled for November. Meanwhile, Brendan is expected to be arraigned on Friday. Reactions, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments below.

[Image via Fairfax County Police Department,Christine Banfield/Facebook]