A Virginia suburb is rocked by murders as prosecutors highlight key evidence

Virginia prosecutors point to blood spatter analysis as key evidence that led to the arrest of a former IRS employee in connection with the 2023 murders of his wife and an unidentified man in the idyllic Washington, D.C., suburb of Herndon, according to local reports Report.

Brendan Banfield, a husband and father of a then-four-year-old daughter, and his family's then-22-year-old Brazilian au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, are accused of killing Christine Banfield – Brendan's wife and a Fairfax County intensive care worker – and Joseph Ryan, the 38-year-old man who showed up at the Banfields' home armed with a knife, in Herndon, Virginia, in February 2023.

Ryan's connection to the family or her au pair remains unclear.

Assistant Fairfax Commonwealth's Attorney Eric Clingan said in court on Sept. 27 that investigators spent a year reviewing “two final reports from forensic experts” and concluded they had enough evidence to support their theory to prove that Ryan and Christine's bodies were moved after death. According to the Associated Press, Ryan's arms were moved and had Christine's blood on them.

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John Carroll, a lawyer for Brendan and Peres Magalhaes, argued that the prosecution's new evidence does not prove that Brendan killed his wife and Ryan.

“It just doesn’t add up, judge,” he said in court on Sept. 27, AP reported.

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Fairfax Circuit Chief Judge Penney Azcarate ultimately decided to deny Brendan's release on bail following the conclusion of the hearing last week.

Juliana Peres Magalhaes is charged with aggravated murder and use of a firearm in the commission of a felony. (Fairfax County Police)

Brendan Banfield, who was arrested last month, more than a year after the double murders, is charged with four counts of aggravated murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony.

Magalhaes, who was arrested about eight months after the murders, is also charged with aggravated murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony.

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“On February 24, 2023, I stood in the middle of a cul-de-sac in Fairfax County and described the deaths of two people in a group home. Now, 570 days later, we learn the deaths of Joseph Ryan and Christine Banfield are indeed murders,” Fairfax County Police Department Chief Kevin Davis said during a press conference in September.

Christine Banfield was stabbed to death in the bedroom of her home in Fairfax County, Virginia. (Facebook)

When police initially responded to a 911 call from the apartment that day, they found Christine with stab wounds to the neck and Ryan with fatal gunshot wounds in the upstairs bedroom of the house. Authorities took Christine to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead, Davis said.

Officers recovered a knife and two firearms at the scene.

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“We know that Brendan Banfield and Juliana Magalhaes were in a romantic relationship at the time of the murders,” Davis said during the September press conference. “I will not describe the involvement of our victim, Joseph Ryan, in the case at this time as the investigation is ongoing,” Davis said.

Fairfax County Police initially responded to the double homicide in the 13200 block of Stable Brook Way in Herndon, Virginia on February 24, 2023. (FOX 5DC)

On February 24, 2023, Magalhaes told police that she left the Banfields' home in the 13200 block of Stable Brook Way in Herndon to take her young daughter to the National Zoo. She told authorities she started driving but realized she had forgotten the lunches she had packed for the trip to the house, so she turned around and noticed an unfamiliar car in the driveway.

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She then reportedly called Brendan, a former IRS detective who had left for work at the time, and told him about the unknown car in her driveway. The couple decided to meet at the Banfields' house and go in together reported the Washington Post.

Juliana Peres Magalhaes (Instagram)

Initially, Magalhaes told police that when she and Brendan went inside, they saw an unknown man named Ryan holding Christine at knifepoint. She is said to have called him an intruder. Ryan appeared to be fully clothed while Christine was naked in the master bedroom of the house.

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It remains unclear exactly what happened in the house that Friday morning, but Magalhaes and Brendan both apparently admitted to shooting Ryan while the man held a knife at Christine.

Prosecutors allege that a computer at the Banfield home was linked to an account on a sex fetish website, the Post reported.

Brendan Banfield is charged with aggravated murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony. (Virginia County Police Department)

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While the account on that computer appeared to feature a photo of Christine in a swimsuit, it is unclear who exactly communicated through the account. The profile apparently didn't contain any evidence that she was interested in knife play, bondage and BDSM. Clingan previously said this in court, according to the Post.

Ryan, the man who allegedly held Christine at knifepoint, also apparently had an account on the site and had communicated with anyone who accessed the site from the Banfield computer.

According to prosecutors, a framed photo of Brendan Banfield and Juliana Magalhaes and underwear were found in the room where the double murder occurred. (Fairfax County Commonwealth's Attorney's Office)

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Authorities arrested Magalhaes in October 2023 after she moved into the Banfields' master bedroom and placed a framed photo of herself with Brendan on a nightstand next to the bed. A grand jury indicted the 23-year-old in April and her trial is scheduled to take place in November.

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Magalhaes' attorney, Ryan Campbell, did not respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital. Brendan is no longer employed by the IRS, the agency confirmed.