{"id":760,"date":"2026-06-05T14:39:17","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:39:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=760"},"modified":"2026-06-05T14:39:17","modified_gmt":"2026-06-05T14:39:17","slug":"brendan-banfield-to-be-sentenced-in-elaborate-au-pair-double-murder-plot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=760","title":{"rendered":"Brendan Banfield to be sentenced in elaborate au pair double murder plot"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

The former IRS agent convicted in a deadly catfishing scheme targeting his wife and a stranger is expected to be sentenced Friday to a mandatory life term in prison.<\/p>\n

Read more Karen Read says she doesn\u2019t \u2018pay for meals\u2019 as support continues after acquittal<\/a><\/p>\n

Brendan Banfield, 40, was found guilty in February on two counts of aggravated murder, one count of using a firearm in committing a felony, and child endangerment in the 2023 killings of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan at the Banfields\u2019 home in Herndon, Virginia.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Because of the aggravated murder convictions, Banfield is set to spend the rest of his life behind bars.<\/p>\n

The couple\u2019s au pair involved in the plot, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Peres Magalhaes initially faced charges of second-degree murder but was given the lesser punishment after she cooperated with authorities and testified for the prosecution at Banfield\u2019s trial in Northern Virginia. <\/p>\n

The sentencing is set to close the highly publicized case, which was tied to a fetish website.<\/p>\n

During the trial, Banfield admitted on the stand that he cheated on his wife with Magalhaes, 25, and with several other women.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

Prosecutors said Banfield was motivated by an affair and used the fetish website to lure Ryan, 39, to what he believed was a violent sexual fantasy at the Banfields\u2019 home Feb. 24, 2023.<\/p>\n

Read more Karen Read reveals decision behind new lawsuit against city and police<\/a><\/p>\n

The events of that morning ended with Banfield fatally stabbing his wife, 37, and shooting Ryan, prosecutors said.<\/p>\n

In court, Peres Magalhaes said she also shot Ryan. She said Banfield had been trying to avoid a divorce when they embarked on the catfishing plot and used Christine Banfield\u2019s laptop to create a fake user profile on the fetish site that purported to be her. <\/p>\n

The profile, \u201cAnnastasia9,\u201d described wanting to find a stranger with whom she could act out the sexual fantasy in her home. Ryan was that stranger, Peres Magalhaes said.<\/p>\n

During his trial, Banfield rejected those allegations and called them \u201cabsolutely crazy.\u201d He testified that he shot Ryan after he saw him stab his wife.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did not want to shoot him,\u201d said Banfield, who testified that he was armed with his service weapon. \u201cUm, I wanted him to let her go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more An \u2018anti-weaponization\u2019 fund workaround and May jobs report predictions: Morning Rundown<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The former IRS agent convicted in a deadly catfishing scheme targeting his wife and a stranger is expected to be sentenced Friday to a mandatory life term in prison<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":759,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-760","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-u-s-news"],"yoast_head":"\nBrendan Banfield to be sentenced in elaborate au pair double murder plot - Trusted Moving Group<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/trustedmovinggroups.com\/?p=760\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Brendan Banfield to be sentenced in elaborate au pair double murder plot - 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