The Au Pair Affair: Brendan Banfield sentenced to life — "Case by Case" — "48 Hours" Podcast

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: One would hope that someday you will become tortured by what you have done to Christine, Joe, Christine's daughter, and their families. But nothing I have seen suggests that you will. The level of cruelty, calculation, and inhumanity in this case reflects something far deeper than anger or impulse. It reflects evil, which is why I carry no burden and find no hesitation in sentencing you to life. [00:00:30] Anne-Marie Greene: That was Fairfax County Circuit Judge Penny Escarate announcing the sentence for former IRS Special Agent Brendan Banfield, life in prison without the possibility of parole. Now, Banfield was found guilty of murdering his wife, Christine, and another man, Joseph Ryan, inside the Banfield's Northern Virginia home in 2023. The case had been dubbed the Au Pair Affair because of Brendan's relationship with the Banfield's Brazilian live-in nanny Juliana Perez Magalhães. Now, Juliana pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter for also shooting Joseph Ryan and cooperated with the government testifying against Brendan. In February, Magalhães was sentenced to 10 years behind bars, and on Friday, June 5th, the victim's family members spoke up to honor their loved ones and seek justice. [00:01:24] Speaker 3: Somehow, I found myself reliving something I had never experienced as if I had been there. I envisioned Christine's fear, felt her terror, and wished I was there to take her place. I no longer had a sister. I was no longer a sister. The absence of Joe is not abstract. It is constant, visible, and devastating. [00:01:45] Anne-Marie Greene: Welcome to Case by Case. I'm 48 Hours correspondent Anne-Marie Greene, and I'm joined by producer Michelle Segona, who has followed every twist and turn of this story. Today, we're going to discuss its dramatic conclusion, including Brendan Banfield's decision to speak in court. Hello, Michelle. [00:02:04] Michelle Segona: Hey, Anne-Marie. It's great to see you. You know, it's been more than three years for these victims' families, and during sentencings, I always think about how difficult this is for them, but also how strong they have to be to be able to be that voice for their loved ones. [00:02:21] Anne-Marie Greene: I want you to sort of walk us through some of the key moments from the sentencing, but can you also remind folks of just how we got here? [00:02:29] Michelle Segona: During his January trial, the Commonwealth argued Brendan and Juliana plotted to kill Christine Banfield by luring Joseph Ryan to the house. The goal in all of this was to make it look like Joe was the one who stabbed Christine to death. Brendan and Juliana created online accounts impersonating Christine, including on a fetish site, and ultimately convinced Joe Ryan to come to the Banfield house with a knife under the pretense of a rough sexual encounter. Brendan entered the bedroom to save his wife and shot Joe in self-defense. [00:03:06] Anne-Marie Greene: And key to the Commonwealth's case was the Banfield's au pair, Juliana. Did he tell you what he wanted to do? Yes. What did he say? He mentioned his plan to get rid of her. So she said he mentioned his plan to get rid of her. And this was really a case of he said, she said. [00:03:30] Michelle Segona: Juliana came to the United States from Brazil as an au pair in 2021 and started a relationship with Brendan in 2022. And she testified that Brendan wanted out of his marriage, but felt a divorce was not an option. So he wanted full custody of his daughter and Juliana said money was also a concern in all of this. Juliana said money was also a concern in all of this. And remember, Juliana and Brendan lived together in the house, in the bedroom, Anne-Marie, that he used to share with Christine after the killings. That is, until Juliana was arrested months later, followed by Brendan's arrest. [00:04:09] Anne-Marie Greene: Right. So let us go back over sort of the details of this murder plan, because it's sort of convoluted. [00:04:17] Michelle Segona: It is convoluted. It's there's so many details and so many twists and turns, it's hard to wrap your brain around a lot of it. According to the prosecution and Juliana, Joe was told to come to the house. This was on February 24th, 2023, and it was in the early morning. And Christine was still in the bedroom. Brendan then left the house under the pretense of going to work, but he was really at a McDonald's. Now, Juliana had also departed with the Banfield's young daughter for a supposed trip to the zoo. The door was left unlocked when they left the house, ready for Joe's arrival. Now, Juliana said she parked near the house and tipped Brendan off as to when Joe went inside the house. Now, Brendan, Juliana and Valerie, all three of them returned to the house and they went around back and they entered through the basement. Valerie and Juliana stayed downstairs. Now, this was as Brendan headed upstairs to the bedroom, but then Juliana followed Brendan. Juliana testified that when she got to the room, Christine was still alive. Yelling at Brendan that Joe had a knife, and that's when Juliana said, Brendan shot Joe. [00:05:34] Anne-Marie Greene: So, you know, Christine obviously is unaware of any of this. She thinks that a man has entered her bedroom, a knife wielding man has entered her bedroom. Joe thinks that he is coming for some sort of consensual rendezvous. So, they are both sort of confused about what's happening. At this point, Christine has not been stabbed yet. She was yelling because there's a strange man in her room and he's got a knife. [00:06:01] Michelle Segona: And according to Juliana, Christine was terrified and told her to call 911. Now, she did make the call, but then claimed that Brendan did some sort of signal for her to hang up, so she hung up right away. That was the first 911 call. She stepped away and then returned to see Brendan stabbing Christine. Juliana said that she also saw Joe moving and warned Brendan and then shot Joe. Now, she said Brendan had given her a gun earlier that day. And then she called 911 for real. [00:06:36] Speaker 5: 911, where's your emergency? So, law enforcement arrived soon after, but Brendan was not arrested. [00:06:55] Anne-Marie Greene: That didn't actually come until a year and a half later. In fact, Juliana was the first one arrested and jailed. [00:07:01] Michelle Segona: And she stood by Brendan, but then ultimately cooperated with the Commonwealth and pleaded guilty to manslaughter. And then Brendan was arrested and indicted. [00:07:12] Anne-Marie Greene: And correct me if I'm wrong, Michelle, but she was getting help from Brendan's mom. Like, they were putting money on her books and that sort of thing while she was in jail. And she was standing by him for a bit. [00:07:21] Michelle Segona: She did stand by him for a while. His family was helping her out, especially in the beginning. This was until she decided to be the Commonwealth star witness. [00:07:36] Anne-Marie Greene: So, Brendan, in his defense, they continue to deny this whole catfishing scheme. This was always self-defense after an intruder entered the home and then attacked Christine. [00:07:46] Michelle Segona: Even when he spoke at sentencing, Anne-Marie, Brendan said that there was no indication that he or Juliana had access to Christine's devices to create fake accounts. He said there was no evidence that he even stabbed Christine. [00:08:03] Speaker 6: There is no dispute that Joe Ryan brought the knife to my home. My DNA and fingerprints are not on the knife. Joe Ryan's DNA is on the knife right at the junction of the handle and the blade. The DNA is right where you would expect it to be for someone who is forcefully using the knife. [00:08:20] Anne-Marie Greene: And then during the trial, the defense had pointed out that Juliana had changed her stories, suggesting that she only worked with the government after Brendan was arrested and she sort of lost hope. [00:08:32] Michelle Segona: Look, the jury didn't buy it during the trial and the judge didn't buy it at sentencing. And just a reminder that in addition to two counts of aggravated murder, Brendan Banfield was also found guilty of one count of use of a firearm and one count of child endangerment. [00:08:49] Anne-Marie Greene: Right. And Michelle, we should talk a little bit about the child endangerment charge. In an earlier 48 Hours podcast episode, we talked a little bit about this. It's because that while the killings were taking place, the Banfield's daughter was in the house downstairs in the basement. [00:09:03] Michelle Segona: She was. It's disturbing that this happened with a four-year-old child inside of that Virginia home where her mother was being set up and ultimately murdered. [00:09:17] Anne-Marie Greene: Yeah, you can only imagine what what she heard. So we had the guilty verdict and then the sentencing now. I should note that the day before the sentencing, Banfield's defense attorney tried to get the murder verdict thrown out, but the judge dismissed his motion. As for the sentencing itself, it was an opportunity for family members now to really tell the judge more about their loved ones, more about what they have lost. [00:09:42] Michelle Segona: That testimony at trial was very much about the evidence, troubles in the marriage, but not a lot of detail about who Christine and Joe were as people. [00:09:51] Anne-Marie Greene: So let's start by hearing from Christine's older sister, Danielle Hawker. [00:09:56] Speaker 3: The memories we shared growing up helped shaped my sense of love, family, and who I am. They felt simple and whole, filled with laughter, safety, and love. Since losing her, those same memories have changed. They are no longer just joyful, but layered with grief. Each one a reminder of both how much I had and how much was taken. [00:10:21] Michelle Segona: It was especially emotional when Danielle would reflect on their time as children and all of these memories that they shared together as little kids all the way up until adults. Christine's obsession with the Backstreet Boys, watching Full House on TV, having a crush on Brad Pitt and Legends of the Fall. We also learned more about Christine's life as a nurse and how she wanted to help others. [00:10:48] Anne-Marie Greene: Yeah, I mean, even Bryn talks about that. We'll get to that later. But I mean, she was so dedicated, particularly through the pandemic when it was very grueling work. She also obviously had some very strong words for her brother-in-law, Brendan, particularly in regards to his allegations that his wife, Christine, had also been unfaithful. [00:11:08] Speaker 3: His lies did not just attempt to destroy her reputation. They forced me to relive my grief with anger and helplessness I cannot fully describe. He was the one that had countless affairs, several attempts at finding the right mistress that would eventually help carry out the plan with him because the absurd line of questioning about a plan didn't just develop when he started his affair with Juliana. I believe she meant no more to him than anyone else in his life. She was just another person to control and exploit. What he presented as affection was manipulation. What may have appeared as love was nothing more than strategy. If there had been any genuine intent to build a life with Juliana, he could have chosen a lawful and honest path. He could have divorced and moved on. But divorce would have required relinquishing control and control was always the priority. His actions were not driven by love, but a desire for power. Deception and a complete disregard for the lives he destroyed. [00:12:10] Michelle Segona: And Danielle also brought up her young niece and all of this and how one day she would have to hear about how her father talked about her mother. But Danielle really assured the court that her and her family would make sure that this child would hear stories about her mom and hear them with light and joy and love. [00:12:34] Anne-Marie Greene: And then we also heard about Joe Ryan because sort of, you know, during the trial, we only really know him as the man from FetLife, a fetish app, right? Who falls victim to this murder plot. For Brendan, he is nothing but a pawn. It could have been Joe Ryan. It could have been anyone else who kind of showed up. And so hearing from his mother and his aunt, it really humanized him. [00:13:01] Michelle Segona: It did. His mother, Deidre Fisher, she wasn't able to be in the courtroom, but she did speak via video conference and she was emotional. She really was when talking about how hard it was to see her son in the public eye, initially being accused of killing Christine. She said she has a lot of medical issues right now, which are linked to the trauma of her son's murder. [00:13:28] Speaker 7: Branden Banfield, his defense team, even some of the press carelessly characterized Joe as the intruder. The fetish guy into rough sex, the rapist and the murderer. Or simply the other forgettable guy. Not even showing Joe's face during the murder trial. Joe was chosen because Brendan Banfield thought he would make a good dupe. He would make a good dupe to be framed for the planned murder of his wife. As with so many other things, Brendan was wrong. In some ways, my son was flawed, regular Joe. But he also had some amazing qualities. [00:14:36] Michelle Segona: She described Joe as caring. Someone who looked after his grandparents. She said he was the person who would fight for the underdog. He had a lot of love for gardening. He loved animals. And she also described him as a feminist. I mean, Michelle, here's the thing, right? [00:14:52] Anne-Marie Greene: Whatever he was sort of involved in, this is supposed to be consenting adults. There's nothing wrong with this sort of behavior. And it's also just one aspect of a person's life. You know, clearly it was much more than that. [00:15:04] Michelle Segona: I just, I wish that these positive things about Christine and Joe would be the first, first things that come up on the first page of the search engine as opposed to all of this negativity. [00:15:17] Anne-Marie Greene: Yeah, absolutely. And then Brendan Banfield spoke. Yeah, I wasn't sure what he was going to say. I wondered whether or not he would apologize or take sort of any ownership at all. Certainly he testified during the trial, but this was a moment for him to speak beyond that. I'm curious, you know, your reaction to what he had to say. [00:15:41] Michelle Segona: I would like to say I was surprised or shocked that he didn't take responsibility. But I think what we heard at the trial and what we heard at the sentencing really go hand in hand. He had trouble getting out some of his sentences. He was reading very fast. At one point he even stopped and paused for a long period. He continued to blame law enforcement, who he believes put the catfishing story ahead of the evidence in his case. And I was struck at how he described Christine as a wife and a mother. And we want to play you a little bit of that. [00:16:15] Speaker 6: You know, Christine was a wonderful and loving person. Just as you heard from many of the people here, she was a loving and compassionate nurse. During COVID, she volunteered to take care of, to take care of many of the people that were sick and struggling. She signed up for extra shifts. She signed up for vaccination clinics. She cared for her daughter. She enrolled her in dance lessons. She was there for recitals. I loved her very much, despite what you may think of my affairs. Our marriage worked for us. It wasn't something, it wasn't something that I looked to end. There was no, it was told to other women that I was never going to leave Christine. That was always, that was always how it was said. [00:17:07] Michelle Segona: And so interesting what he said about his marriage. He said he didn't want to diminish Christine's life, but insisted he wasn't responsible for her death. He didn't display any type of remorse during the sentencing hearing. [00:17:22] Anne-Marie Greene: So although he was charged with two counts of aggravated murder, he could only be sentenced to one because of Virginia law. The judge said that in her 18 years on the bench, she had sentenced hundreds of defendants. And most of those individuals were not inherently bad. She described them rather, you know, people who maybe made mistakes. But she said that there were two instances of individuals who showed no remorse. And that it was apparent that Brendan was, and this is a quote, the same kind of evil. I want to play some of what the judge had to say. It's long, but I definitely think it's worth hearing in full. [00:18:07] Speaker 1: The disregard of the life of your wife, someone you supposedly loved, is almost unfathomable. Scheming for months, a master plan involving so many moving parts, including deception and manipulation, luring a completely innocent man into your deadly trap, continuing on after the murders without a care, and not once thinking of the impact on Christine's daughter, the unspoken tragic victim of your behavior. You did not just take her mother from her. You placed her in the middle of the horror you created. She is young now, but one day she will understand your true self. And she will understand what you took from her, which is everything. The loss of her mother, who will never be a part of her life as she grows. The loss of her family and the security she lived under. All of this is lost based on your calculated and selfish behavior. It is impossible to comprehend what Joseph Ryan experienced, seeing you enter the room, being shot in the head, blinded, hearing you instruct the co-defendant to shoot him again. And Christine, to imagine her final thoughts as she initially thought you were there to save her from what she thought was a brutal attack. And then to see you over her, stabbing her again and again with a knife in her neck. Her final realization that this was all you're doing. And in her final moments, thinking of her daughter. [00:19:27] Michelle Segona: I have thought a lot about what Christine was thinking during those final moments before she died. The thought of her not being able to hug and protect her child. I thought about Joseph Ryan, how scared and confused he and Christine must have been in those moments. And when the judge concluded this hearing with these strong words, she said it perfectly that this was a trap. This was a deadly trap. And the repercussions for so many are extreme. [00:19:57] Anne-Marie Greene: So Michelle, Brandon Banfield is expected to serve life in prison. If there's going to be an appeal, he needs to sort of file an appeal within 30 days of the final order of the case. He will have a new attorney as of now. It's a court appointed attorney. He wasn't sure if he was going to use the court appointed attorney or if he was going to hire his own. The judge appointed him an attorney because the expectation was there would be an appeal. You know, you've been there for all the twists and turns of this case. Any final thoughts? [00:20:26] Michelle Segona: You know, the final piece to this long puzzle is in place at the moment, right? But this isn't completely over. Now, if Banfield appeals, it depends on what happens during that process of what the next steps for this case could be. I hope that the families here, both sides, have some sort of comfort knowing that the two people found responsible, one defendant from a plea, another one from a jury, that they are behind bars in the here and now. [00:20:57] Anne-Marie Greene: Yes, they are. [00:20:58] Speaker ?: Yes, they are. [00:20:58] Anne-Marie Greene: Yes, they are. Michelle Segona, thank you so much, because this was a complicated case and you've helped to guide us through the whole thing. And thanks for joining Case by Case. Thank you so much. And thanks to all of you for listening. Be sure to rate and review wherever you get your podcasts. [00:21:22] Speaker ?: Thank you.