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A jury convicted Brendan Banfield, 40, of two counts of aggravated murder for orchestrating a plot that left his wife, Christine Banfield, and a stranger, Joseph Ryan, dead inside the Banfields’ Reston home.
Banfield was also convicted of using a firearm in the commission of a felony and child endangerment. He faces a mandatory life sentence at a hearing scheduled for May 8, 2026.
Prosecutors said Banfield and the family’s au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, devised the scheme after beginning a romantic relationship. On Feb. 24, 2023, they lured Ryan, 39, to the house and staged the scene to suggest he was an intruder who had killed Christine Banfield.
Magalhaes, 25, shot and killed Ryan. She pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Oct. 29, 2024, and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors during Banfield’s trial.
A judge sentenced Magalhaes to 10 years in prison. A Brazilian national, she will be deported after completing her sentence.
Fairfax County Commonwealth’s Attorney Steve Descano said Magalhaes’ testimony was crucial in explaining the complicated plot to jurors. He described Ryan as a “perfect stranger” who was drawn into the scheme and said no sentence could undo the harm caused by his death.
Descano called Banfield the mastermind and said the conviction ensures he faces a lifetime in prison for Ryan’s murder.