Husband testifies he did not plot wife's killing in double murder trial connected to au pair affair

Brendan Banfield looks on during his double murder trial in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner, Pool)

RICHMOND, Va. – A man testified on Wednesday that he loved his wife and did not want to end his marriage, despite having an affair with his family's au pair in what would become a sprawling double homicide case centered around the two of them.

Wearing a gray suit and a plaid tie, Brendan Banfield testified in a Fairfax, Virginia, court under oath about what happened the day he began cheating on his late wife, Christine Banfield, with Juliana Peres Magalhães in what he said was a casual affair. He described Magalhães scooting her chair closer to his while eating dinner one night, while his wife was out of town. He testified that she followed him into his room at bedtime, and he didn't stop her.

But Banfield testified he and Magalhães did not plot to kill his wife and another man in the months that followed, despite what prosecutors suggest.

“I think that it’s an absurd line of questioning for something that is not serious, that a plan was made to get rid of my wife,” he testified. “That is absolutely crazy.”

Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the killings of his wife and Joe Ryan. His testimony will be a key piece of evidence that a northern Virginia jury will be tasked with weighing this month. Banfield, who has pleaded not guilty, could face life in prison if convicted by his peers.

Prosecutors say Banfield and Magalhães lured Ryan to their house. According to officials, the two then shot him, and Banfield stabbed his wife, staging the scene to look as though Ryan had been a predator stabbing Christine Banfield.

One of the witnesses who corroborates prosecutors’ theory is Magalhães herself.

Earlier in January, Magalhães testified that she and Banfield had created an account in Christine Banfield’s name on a social media platform for people interested in sexual fetishes. There, Ryan connected with the account, and the users made plans to meet for a sexual encounter involving a knife.