Defense seeks suppression of au pair’s testimony in double murder – NBC4 Washington

Attorneys for an au pair accused of a double murder in Northern Virginia have filed a motion to suppress their client's statements to police officers minutes and hours after they arrived at the crime scene.

Prosecutors and police say Brendan Banfield plotted with Juliana Peres Magalhaes to kill his wife, Christine. The suspects had an affair for months before Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan were killed in the Banfields' Herndon home in February 2023, prosecutors say.

The suspects used a sex fetish website to lure Ryan into the house, prosecutors say.

Christine Banfield was found stabbed to death in her home. Ryan was found shot nearby.

Peres Magalhaes told Fairfax County police officers that she and Brendan Banfield caught Ryan attacking Christine in the bedroom, and that Brendan shot and wounded Ryan during the attack. The suspects told police that Brendan then told Peres Magalhaes to get another gun so they could shoot him again.

At Thursday's hearing, Peres Magalhaes' lawyers argued that their client's statements to police should be suppressed because police wrongfully arrested her. They said body camera video shows their client asking officers: “Do I have to leave? Can I go back into the house?”

Prosecutors disputed the claim that Fairfax County police arrested the au pair, saying police treated her with care and respect. Officers ordered her to leave the location and go to police headquarters, prosecutors said. Police wanted to provide a safe place for Peres Magalhaes and the Banfields' young daughter to stay in safety and warmth, prosecutors said.

The judge is expected to rule next Thursday on the defense's motion to suppress the au pair's testimony.

Peres Magalhaes was charged with Ryan's premeditated murder last year.

Brendan Banfield was charged on Monday with four counts of aggravated murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a serious crime.

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