Husband Brendan Banfield of Virginia arrested and charged with murder of his wife and another man

The Virginia husband caught in a bizarre love triangle with his wife and their Brazilian au pair has been charged with murdering his wife and a “fetishist” man in the couple's mansion as part of an elaborate plot.

Brendan Banfield is accused of stabbing his wife Christine Banfield, 37, and shooting 38-year-old Joseph Ryan during the double murder in a love triangle early in the morning of February 24, 2024.

At the time of the murders, the Banfields were married and lived in the house with their au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes, and their then four-year-old daughter.

The 39-year-old IRS investigator and Magalhaes allegedly shot Ryan, who had been summoned to the couple's multimillion-dollar home in Herndon via a sex fetish website.

Magalhaes, then 23, told investigators she and Banfield walked in as Ryan was attacking the naked Christine Banfield while her employer shot the “intruder.” She is accused of firing the fatal shot.

When police arrived at the villa, they found Ryan dead: he had suffered a gunshot wound, while Christine Banfield was suffering from stab wounds.

She was taken to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Magalhaes claims self-defense. But the prosecution claims that the whole incident was a ruse orchestrated by Magalhaes to get rid of Christine.

They remain convinced that Ryan was a fool who was drawn into the sordid plot.

Prosecutors had previously revealed that Ryan had planned to show up at home with a user who appeared on the online sex dating site “Fetlife” under the name Annastasia9.

According to the Washington Post, the profile featured a petite woman in a one-piece swimsuit.

Investigators said there was no evidence Christine Banfield ever created the profile or knew of its existence, but who created it was not disclosed.

Fairfax police arrested Brendan Banfield on Monday at the home where the murders took place after a grand jury indicted him on four counts of aggravated murder and one count of use of a firearm in the commission of a crime.

He is accused of the premeditated murder of the two victims.

The grand jury's indictment followed a 19-month investigation and new findings by investigators, according to U.S. Attorney Steve Descano.

“Early last year, a double murder devastated two families and shocked our entire community,” Descano said during a press conference. “I will ensure that my office makes the strongest arguments possible at trial and that we continue to seek justice for the victims and their families.”

Magalhaes was arrested in October 2023 and charged with Ryan's murder, but no one had been charged in Christine's death as of Monday.

Both murder suspects are being held at the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center, with Banfield expected to go to trial later this week.

In an email to her mother, Magalhaes complained about her life in prison.

“I am tired of this place and this situation,” Juliana Peres Magalhaes recently wrote to her mother in an email from Fairfax County Jail, according to the Washington Post.

“I'm unhappy and nothing makes me happy,” she said in the June email. “I just want to get out of here and go home to be with you. With God's grace, we will be together soon, Mom.”

“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 residence,” Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis said Monday. “Now, 570 days later, we know that the deaths of Joseph Ryan and Christine Banfield were in fact murders.”

Officials, who said Banfield and Magalhaes had a “sexual relationship,” did not disclose Ryan's connection to the family, citing the ongoing investigation.

“One thing is clear, we now have evidence that allows us to claim that Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan were unlawfully killed,” the police chief added.

In April, it was revealed at a preliminary hearing that Magalhaes and Banfield, who continued their relationship after the deaths, had been at a shooting range weeks before the murders.

At the time of her arrest, Magalhaes had moved her belongings into the master bedroom. Her clothes were hanging in the closet where Christine's clothes had previously hung and a framed picture of her and Banfield sat on a nightstand, according to the outlet.

Prosecutors presented business records to support the claim, saying Brendan Banfield purchased a Glock at the shooting range on Jan. 28, 2023, WTOP reported.