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WATCH: Brendan Banfield sentenced in Fairfax County ‘au pair affair’ murders

June 5, 2026, 12:25 PM

A judge imposed a life sentence on the Fairfax County husband who killed his wife and another man amid an affair with his family’s au pair in February 2023.

Brendan Banfield has been sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole after being convicted in February of two counts of aggravated murder in the killings of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan.

Banfield’s attorney had attempted to have his conviction overturned Thursday, arguing that Fairfax County prosecutors made three errors in his prosecution which influenced the jury. But Judge Penney Azcarate denied the request, allowing the sentencing to move forward.

Friday’s hearing comes after Azcarate sentenced the former au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, to the maximum penalty allowed for manslaughter in February –10 years in prison. Her sentence deviated from the recommendation made by the commonwealth and the au pair’s attorney under a plea deal.

During Banfield’s trial, Magalhães testified about conspiring with him to kill his wife, Christine, and Ryan. She backed prosecutors’ argument that the two staged an elaborate scheme to lure Ryan to the home to get rid of Banfield’ wife and blame her killing on someone else.

Banfield was also found guilty of use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and child endangerment, as his 4-year-old child was home during the killings.

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