Nanny’s Affair Ends in Twisted Double Murder

What's your name and what's going on? My name is Brandon Banfield, I'm a federal agent, this is my house. There's somebody here, I shot him, he stabbed her. He told the 9-1-1 operator that he shot a man who was stabbing his wife, and that he didn't know who this man was. Are they coming? Yeah, they're on the way, you should see them soon. They're pulling up outside right now. Where'd all this blood come from, you know? I was holding her neck. From what we could tell very early on, this was not going to be a normal investigation. I'm sorry, what's going on this morning? And Brandon said, "Police dropped the knife, dropped the knife, because he had a knife." And then he said, "Dropped the gun to Brandon," they were yelling, I couldn't understand. They were super fast. Knife's there, guns are on the bed. We're going to have to see her. They told responding police officers that they essentially interrupted a rape and a murder in progress. So that's what we had to go on initially. Okay, so you live here? I'm an au pair. You're an au pair, okay. Just make sure this is okay. 22-year-old au pair, Juliana Magalhaes, has just witnessed a horrifying crime. Who was that? My mother-in-law. My mother-in-law, where's she now? Fairbanks County 911, where's your emergency? Hello, Fairbanks County 911? There were two 911 calls for service. The first 911 call that comes in and results in a hang-up, and we don't hear back for another 13 minutes. I need any help. There is an emergency. My son, he was just stuck in the night, and now he's bleeding a lot. I don't know what to do anymore. When this call went out, before I even arrived at the scene, just the geography of this call had me wondering if there was more to it than meets the eye. The location, number one, was odd. It's a middle-to-upper-middle-class residential neighborhood, very quiet, virtually a non-existent crime rate. When we first were notified, the information that we were receiving initially looked to us like it may have been a home break-in. We knew that there was an adult male who had been declared deceased inside the residence, and there was an adult female that had been transported to a local hospital. And we began, with our crime scene detectives, to process the scene. At the same time that that was happening, we had detectives interviewing Juliana, the au-pair, and her mother, who had been in the hospital for a long period of time. We had detectives interview Juliana, the au-pair, and her mother, who had been in the hospital for a long period of time. If you just want to tell me quickly what happened. I don't know what happened. Everything happened so fast. Do you know who the person is? I have no idea. When the au pair Juliana was escorted out of the house, she was almost hyperventilating. She was waving her hands around a lot and you can actually see on the inside of her hands, her palms look red, kind of the color of blood. Where's Brendan? I'm sure they're giving him some water and trying to help him calm down a little bit. What's your name? Brendan Banfield. We're just going to get you in a cruiser outside in the air where you can breathe. You're all good, okay? Brendan Banfield was a special agent for the IRS. He was a badge wearing, gun toting federal law enforcement officer. You're a little too close. Tammy regularly hauls stuff to her kids at college. That's why she shops at BJ's Wholesale Club, saving up to 25% off grocery store prices. Beef jerky, microwave meals, laundry pods, even they can't screw up. Have you met my kids? And with BJ's gas, she gets there for less. They call me the road warrior. This is your home, road warrior mom. Home of the save. Join for just $20 at bjs.com slash mesquite and save 10 cents per gallon for six months. Open soon. Limited time offer, new members only. BJ. Home of the save. This episode is brought to you by TXU Energy. For the first time ever, Texans have an energy plan that combines free nights all year with daytime summer savings. It's called Free Nights and Cool Summer. You get free nights every night all year long, plus a 25% bonus toward your daytime use all summer. It's a first of its kind plan created for how Texans actually use energy. Discover how much more you could save with Free Nights and Cool Summer. TXU Energy. Energy for everything. Visit TXU.com. For more information, rep number 1-0-0-0-4. Sit here, okay? Is anything bothering you right now? Okay. I don't see any wounds on you. I'm just going to check you out. Would you like to run up to the hospital? Can I be with her? Christine, Brendan's wife, has been taken to the hospital to treat what appear to be these multiple stab wounds. Brendan was mid-thirties, upper thirties, they came from New York, they met in college and you know, in some ways they're like a lot of Washington DC people, they had these, you know, very sort of high-octane careers, very long days. Christine, who was an ICU nurse for pediatrics. She was one of those nurses that went above and beyond. She was just so kind, so friendly, so honest. She was a lovely person who loved her family, who adored her daughter. And they were the kind of couple who get an au pair. These are people who are working 10 to 12 hours a day, typically. When Juliana started, she came to the family from Brazil. She lived there. She did a great job raising this girl. Christine would talk about how great she was on social media. You guys are going to be OK, I promise. All right. The place you're going is very safe. He's going to be in the same building. But for now, Brendan's not at the police station. He's at the hospital. And he is about to receive some awful news. Hi, sir. My name is Gina. I'm one of the doctors here. Your wife has died. So I think that she died of blood loss. Her airway was actually OK. I'll call the medical examiner, of course, and we'll do an autopsy and make sure we know for certain. I was trying to apply pressure. Yeah. I mean, those were enormous wounds. Hi, Mr. Banfield. Yes. Hi, my name is Mike. I'm one of the detectives. My colleague, Detective. Brian's back there. I'm so sorry to meet you under these circumstances. At the hospital, Brendan Banfield declined to speak to the detectives. When Brendan exercised his right not to speak to detectives, he was just throwing up red flag after red flag. So look, Brendan may not be talking, but over at the police station, Juliana is more than willing to tell her version of what happened. That morning, this morning, I woke up getting changed. We went out in the car to to go to the zoo. And then I forgot our lunch at home. Brendan had left that way. So a strange car going through our driveway and parking next to to. To her car. And so I, I thought it was strange because I never seen that car and it was super early in the morning. Juliana tells police that's when she saw this strange car parking next to Christine's, who it turns out was working from home that day. And Juliana claims that she was taking the couple's daughter to the zoo so that Christine could focus. How far do you get when you realize you forgot lunch? Oh, my car was parked in the, in the circle to try, I didn't go there or anything. I tried to call Christine first to, to ask her like, who is that? Or you're okay. It was voicemail. And then I called Brendan to, to see what was, if he knew something and, and, uh, he said, okay, I'm going to try. I'm going to call her, I'll call you back. And then he called me back and he tells me he's on the way back home and me. to stay in the car until he gets home. At the time, Brendan's at McDonald's grabbing some breakfast on his way to work. When she got home, we went in the house, all three of us, I was holding my hand. I could hear the guy upstairs, he was hitting her with something, I don't know what it was that, but it was making noise like it's pain in his life. I don't know. And then Brendan said, "I'm going upstairs, "keep your here in the basement." And then I went after him to see what was going on. - Juliana described Brendan Banfield bringing not only her, but the Banfield's young daughter back into the residence to confront this unknown person. - So you go upstairs, and tell me what you see when you go upstairs. - I see Brendan with the gun. - Okay. - And that's when I see him saying, "Police, drop the knife, police, drop the knife." - Brendan saying that? - Yeah, that strange guy who was saying, "Drop the gun, drop the gun." They were yelling at each other, and then he, the guy, he said like, "Drop the gun." "Drop the gun, I'm gonna kill her." - Did you see a knife in his hand, I guess? - Yeah. - Okay. - And did you see Christine at that point? - Yeah. - Did she have clothes on, or no clothes on? - No clothes on. - Where is Christine in the room at this time? - When I came upstairs, she was on the floor. - Okay. - Walking in the room, what you saw? - They were like a couple that they are, if I can say that, about to have sex or something. - You thought that the man and Christine were about to have sex? - You know what you mean? - Yeah, I think so. Then he started stabbing her with the knife, and when I saw that, I just closed my, I had never seen that, so I, what's happening? Then I, Brendan shot him. And I was even more scared. - Juliana told us other things in that initial interview on the first day that really piqued our interest as to what happened. What happened after that? - The guy was trying to fight. And then I went to the safe where Brendan keeps, he's down there, and I told you I also know how to shoot. - Right. - Because Brendan taught me, I went to the range also. - We had learned Juliana had been taken to the shooting range on two different occasions by Brendan Banfield. He took his au pair to the shooting range to train her how to shoot. She told us that Brendan drew her attention to the threat, and she's the one who fired the second shot. - That's when Juliana made the second 911 phone call, the one where she handed the phone off to Brendan. Remember, the first one was 13 minutes before. This is the one where no one was saying anything. - She's not responding. - Can you tell me how her breathing is? - She's still, her heart's still beating. - Okay. - She's still breathing. She's got a very big hole in her neck. - She's got. - Okay. Just keep applying pressure, okay? And you said you don't know the individual that was shot? - No, I don't know. - No, and I was thinking about those, the cousins. - Okay, I have officers that are pulling up outside, okay? - All right, all right. - Juliana's story leaves police with more questions than answers. First of all, was this guy in the bedroom a random intruder or was this someone that Christine invited into the home? - There's no forced entry. It appears that maybe Christine knew this guy. So that's the whole mystery, right? - Hank joined BJ's Wholesale Club the day he became a father of 30. - I coach football. - Now Coach Hank saves up to 25% off grocery store prices, 30 pounds of pasta, three cases of protein bars, 75 sports drinks. - And that's just pregame. - He knows teamwork and BJ's knows savings. This is your home, Coach, home of the save. Join for just $20 at bjs.com/mesquite and save 10 cents per gallon for six months. Open soon. BJ's, home of the save. - This episode is brought to you by TXU Energy. It's called Free Nights in Cool Summer. You get free nights every night, all year long. Plus, a 25% bonus toward your daytime use all summer. It's a first of its kind plan, created for how Texans actually use energy. Discover how much more you could save with Free Nights in Cool Summer. TXU Energy, energy for everything. Visit txu.com for more information. Rep number 1-0-0-0-4. - Police noticed something else that doesn't really add up. - But Juliana's car was parked over there by that lamp post, just approximately, like I said, about 100 yards away from the house. And when Brendan comes up and pulls up to the residence, he's parked right where that basketball hoop is. So he stopped short significantly of that residence, which kind of always was unusual to us as we were conducting the initial investigation. - Why didn't Brendan pull up right to the house? Did he suspect that this man was his wife's lover? Did he want to catch them red-handed? And by the way, who is this man anyway? - So we identified the man who was shot inside the house as Joseph Ryan. Joseph Ryan is a local police officer and a local resident. He's into fantasy role-playing. - Joe Ryan was absolutely personally engaged in fetishist BDSM activities. - I gotta say something real quick. You know we cover the dangers in this world, and we're gonna jump back to this story in a minute, but one thing that I don't think we talk enough about but is so important, data protection. Okay, especially in this day and age where everything is online. The data brokers, they want to sell and publish your information, and there are thousands of them operating worldwide. It would take hundreds of hours and constant monitoring to try and remove all the data by yourself, which is why our sponsor, Incogni, comes in, because with Incogni, you don't have to lift a finger. Removals happen on autopilot for over 420 data broker sites, and with their new exposure scanner feature, you can see where your personal information is online all in one place. You get to decide what to remove with the help of Incogni's removal specials. Look. I had no idea that sites had my private information, and this is why Incogni's really the best, because they were automatically removing all of this within days. Look, they can't harm you if they can't find you. Use code PRIMECRIME at the link below and get 60% off an annual plan plus a 30-day money-back guarantee, incogni.com/primecrime. - We learned that Joseph Ryan was also part of a online community called FetLife, which is a fetish sexual website where consenting adults will meet to act out very specific sexual fantasies. Some of these fantasies involve consensual violence. - The question becomes, were Joseph Ryan and Christine Banfield engaged in some kind of fetish sex, maybe even a rape fantasy, when Brendan and Juliana showed up? - Christine's life was not a fetish affair person, you know. She was a nurse for rape victims. To then engage in some fantasy about rape, that makes no sense. - When we looked back into Christine's history, going all the way back to interviewing people that knew her since childhood, we didn't uncover anything that suggested that Christine was into violent sexual activity or any type of pornography or anything like that. - I couldn't believe anything about it because this story just didn't sound right. - And yet, here's the twist. Investigators soon find out that Christine did seem to have this secret life that no one suspected. - From Christine's phone, from Christine's laptop, there are messages to FetLife and to all this stuff about orchestrating a rape fantasy. - Based upon the messages, Joseph Ryan believed that he was going there to meet the person who was communicating with him as Anastasia Nine. - Anastasia Nine was apparently Christine's name on the FetLife website. And apparently there was even a profile picture of her. - When events occur, things either make sense or they don't. And when you start seeing bits of information that are incongruent with the other information that you know is available, you start to have to question what really happened. That made us very suspicious that even though the appearance digitally makes it look like it's Christine, that it might not actually be Christine. - But how did the account get on Christine's devices if she didn't create it? Could this be a case of catfishing? - So catfishing would be assuming an online presence of another person or a fictitious person to either lure or or get somebody to do something, who was the person, sending the messages to Joseph Ryan that lured him to the house that day. If Brendan had something to do with this, he's not talking. And police don't have enough to take him into custody. But they'd find something that could explain a lot. They get a search warrant and they go to the house. They're walking around and in the bedroom, there's a picture of Juliana and Brendan on the nightstand. You know, and they were able to determine that it used to be a picture of Brendan and Christine in that place. They certainly had an affair. It lasted, I think, about six months. It was a real affair behind Christine's back. He probably started to get comfortable prematurely. He's going to move his mistress up into the bedroom where he put up pictures, hang up her lingerie, and keep it moving. And now you have to wonder, maybe the two of them had even bigger plans for their future together. ♪ music playing ♪ We discovered that Juliana was attempting to get another passport. Her original passport had been seized in the first search warrant. She's from Brazil, and Brazil does not have an extradition treaty with the U.S. So a decision was made at that time to arrest Juliana. She was charged with the second-degree murder of Joseph Ryan. When Juliana was first arrested, ♪ music playing ♪ we monitored her jail calls. We discovered that Brendan's family and Brendan were funding Juliana inside the jail. Initially, it looked like they were doing a good job of buying her silence. She held out a lot longer than I thought she would hold out. And ultimately, she decided that she couldn't take it anymore. Sometime after Juliana had been arrested, we had gotten enough. We had gotten enough information. We set a date to do a proffer, which is a kind of a structured interview that gives the opportunity for a criminal defendant to tell us what happened. In exchange for that, the Commonwealth attorney offered a plea agreement. ♪ music playing ♪ Juliana wastes no time accepting the proffer. ♪ music playing ♪ And then as, to his main point, besides the fact that he wanted to be with me or if he wanted to be with somebody else, it would be easier if she was not in the picture. Juliana finally realized that she was up against it all and the only way out for her was to tell the truth about Brendan, tell the truth about what they planned together, tell the truth about the murder of Joe Ryan and Christine Banfield. He just started saying, "I need to think if I want to hire somebody, but then they're going to see my account." They're going to know the investigation, they're going to find out that I hired somebody eventually. So Brendan decides not to hire a hitman, no, he decides he's going to murder his wife himself. Did he say where he intended on stabbing her, how he intended on stabbing her? Yeah, he was going to stab her in the neck, just like he did. He was just expecting Joe to bring a pointy knife instead of, you know, the knife to like stab him in the neck. It would be easier. You just said that you, that Christine was talking to Brendan, where you could hear her saying something. Yeah. What did you hear her saying to Brendan as he was stabbing her in the neck? He was stabbing her in the neck. She was just telling him, "Let me go, I'm going to die anyways, I'm going to bleed to death." She was just, "Leave me here, let me die," and then he was telling her, "I can't." So it sounds like Brendan stabbed his wife to death, not Joe Ryan. So now the question is. Was Joe just an innocent victim in all this? Someone who came over, thinking that he was going to have this consensual sex fantasy with Christine, when he ends up getting catfished and shot to death. I mean, on the face of it, he's on these fetish websites. And so, you know, he's like different, you know, and who's this guy? Joe was bright, articulate, funny. Hank joined BJ's Wholesale Club the day he became a father of 30. I coach football. Now Coach Hank saves up to 25% off grocery store prices, 30 pounds of pasta, three cases of protein bars, 75 sports drinks. And that's just pregame. He knows teamwork, and BJ's knows savings. This is your home, Coach. Home of the Save. Open soon. Limited time offer. New members only. BJ's. Home of the Save. You get free nights every night, all year long, plus a 25% bonus toward your daytime use all summer. TXU Energy. Rep number 10004. I would say that he was quirky. And I would say that he was outspoken. Joe had rescue dogs his whole life. He would go pick out the ugliest dog in the pound. He was somebody who lived authentically different sometimes. He was definitely an individual. Our investigation proved that Joe Ryan's encounters with people who are engaged in social media, who are engaged in BDSM/fetishist lifestyles, were all consensual, and none of them resulted in harm, certainly none of them resulted in death or murder. Joseph Ryan is a true victim. Joseph Ryan was set up to take the fall for a heinous, heinous crime. And he was treated as if he was nothing by Brandon and Juliana. With Juliana's help, detectives finally punch holes in Brandon's carefully crafted digital plan. One thing that was really, like, fascinating about this case for me is detectives love digital evidence. You know, when they get to a murder, the first thing they're doing is, "Where are the phones? What social media is this guy on?" At least for a while. Brennan Banfield was a criminal investigator for the IRS. Brennan Banfield understands computers. He understands paper trails. He knows how to make things look like something they're not. Where Brennan Banfield was lacking was in his knowledge of blood spatter, of crime scenes, violent crimes. Those are things that IRS agents typically don't deal with. But the Fairfax Police CSIs are very well-trained. They're more well-trained than forensics. And the detectives doubled down on this crime scene evidence. The blood spatter was key because the way blood existed on Brennan's clothing was indicative that it was Brennan. And never Joe Ryan that was literally in front of his wife as he was stabbing her to death. We had the physical evidence to prove that Brennan Banfield was the person that killed his wife. We charged Brennan Banfield that he was arrested. We had the physical evidence to prove that Brennan Banfield was the person that killed his wife as he was stabbing her to death. So there was a big sigh of relief when that finally happened. And then, you know, and then you cross your fingers that there was enough evidence to convict him. - A month later, Juliana does the only thing that makes sense for her. She pleads guilty to manslaughter in connection with the death of Joseph Ryan. This is a lesser count than the original charge she was facing of second degree murder. - The plea deal was that the prosecutors would recommend to the judge that she gets to leave jail and go home to Brazil. - So look, it's controversial because yes, it's gonna lessen her jail time, but the state is desperate for her testimony to get a conviction against Brendan at trial. - I think Juliana's testimony was very important. So when Juliana was sentenced, it was very interesting sentence here. You had Joe's mom, you know, just heartbreaking. - My son, Joseph Nathan Ryan. My baby boy was born two days before Christmas, making that our special holiday. name was Nathan, which means gift. Since Joe's murder, I haven't been able to take down my little Christmas tree, which sits behind the urn with his ashes. When Joe was taken from me cruelly and callously, murdered by Juliana and Brendan on February 24, 2023, I lost so very much. I lost the sound of Joe calling me the most beautiful word in the world. Mom, my son, Joseph Nathan Ryan, was not and is not despised. 00:02:27:00 - 00:02:51:03 Speaker 2 Miss Perez Maglis, if you could stand up, please. Is there anything you wish to say at this time before sentence is imposed? Yeah, I would like to make a statement. I have caused you all pain. They cannot be measured and forever changed so many lives. And I look back at my younger self. You're 20 years old, falling head over heels for someone. 15 years older. They're only seeing his good side and cling to someone that showed me love. I lost myself in a relationship, leaving my morals and values behind. The guilt and feelings that I didn't serve to live and that I was a monster were overwhelming. I hope someday I can be forgiven. I hope to be able to forgive myself. You may not have come up with a plan. 00:02:51:04 - 00:03:00:06 Speaker 2 I'm sorry. Agreed. And an older man may have groomed you to a point. But let's get straight. You do not deserve anything other than incarceration in a life of reflection on what you have done to the victim in this family. May it weigh heavily on your soul. She knew that involuntary manslaughter carried a maximum of 10 years. So that's just sort of had 10 years to play with. Right. And so it was going to be the judge's call. So today I'm sending you on a manslaughter charge because that's what's before me. Therefore, I do sentence you to 10 years in the penitentiary. After you've completed your 10 year sentence, I will order an additional two years suspended and you will be placed on probation pursuant to Virginia Code 19.2303. That's the law. That's all she can give her. But it's like the judge is saying, I hope that, you know, you struggle with this. Your soul struggles with the rest of your life. Of course, I wanted her to get more time. But the judge. 00:03:00:06 - 00:03:18:12 Speaker 2 Is stepping out of what is typical and giving her the maximum that she could get. I really have to say that I think that sentence was was just. So it's almost a year before Brendan Banfield goes to trial. The prosecution clearly has the advantage. It was a strong case. And Juliana's testimony was key. But we also had an abundance of forensic and digital evidence that was indisputable. When Brendan Banfield's trial begins, he faces a charge of first degree murder in Virginia that carries a life sentence. 00:03:18:12 - 00:03:35:12 Speaker 2 We're here today because Brendan Banfield, the man seated behind me, killed his wife, Christine Banfield, and another man named Joseph Ryan. Those two individuals had no reason to know each other but for the plotting and planning of Brendan Banfield. 00:03:35:12 - 00:03:55:12 Speaker 2 Brendan revealed his desire to get rid of Christine. Divorce was not an option for him. And he convinced young Juliana, 22 years old, not from the United States, living in his home in love with him, that they should get rid of Christine. So they crafted a plan. On February 24th, 2023, Brendan Banfield's birthday, the plan was put into action. You'll hear all of this from Juliana. 00:03:55:13 - 00:04:10:17 Speaker 2 But we're not asking you to believe her alone. It is the blood evidence that you can rely upon without a doubt. The blood cannot lie. With that evidence, we will ask you to find Brendan Banfield guilty of these murders, the associated charges of neglecting his child and of creating a danger for her in that home. 00:04:10:17 - 00:04:31:19 Speaker 2 Thank you. As for the defense, they have their hands full. I think the defense attorney, John Carroll, listen, he had a very guilty client and he had to do the best he could to defend his client under really tough circumstances. You're going to see a presentation of a horrible, tragic, awful event for everyone involved. And there's no disputing that. But there's an awful lot more to look for, ladies and that's what I'm asking you to do. Thank you very much. In what promises to be an explosive trial, Juliana takes the stand. So you began a sexual relationship with a defendant in August of 2022. When you were how old? I was 21. Did he ever talk about getting a divorce with her? No, he basically said divorce was not an option. Did he say why? Mine was involved in custody too. So he didn't want to get divorced. Did he tell you what he wanted to do? Yes. What did he say? He mentioned his plan to get rid of her. He had heard of a website called Fat Life. He's never done anything on the website, but he heard about it. And that's what he was going to do. What is it about Joe's answers and messages that attracted Brendan to selecting Joe? Did he ever tell you? Have you met my kid? Home of the save. Open soon. You get free nights every night all year long. Plus a 25% bonus toward your daytime use all summer. TXU Energy. Rep number 10004. Because he seemed to be like the person who would do the things that Brendan needed the person to do. They would use Christine's email accounts. To create a fake profile. To lure someone in who was into kinky sex. Violent sex. And they would get this guy to come into the house and fake rape Christine. Brendan would be the hero of the day. He would show up, kill the guy, kill his wife, pretending that it had been that bad. That was the plan. Thank you. All right. Cross-examination. So what do you actually remember from that day? Well, I remember that the account was created, the email, and that Christine was upstairs in the bedroom. That's it. So there was an account created and Christine was in the bedroom. Yes. But you don't know where you and Brendan were. I can't tell you for sure. You don't know who got the laptop, which was the device that was used. To create the account, correct? You can say that. Well, I'd rather you tell me. What you're saying is that you're forgetting crucial details regarding a horrific, tragic event for many people. Yeah. And you're not able to remember those details. If Julianna's testimony is shocking, Brendan Banfield does something that no one remembers. She's coming. Mr. Banfield, if you could just stand for a moment. Mr. Banfield, do you understand you have a constitutional right not to testify? Yes, ma'am. By testifying, you understand you waive this constitutional right? Yes. All right. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. Your next witness. Your honor, I call Brendan Banfield. I was very surprised that Brendan Banfield decided to testify. When a criminal defendant takes the stand, they're opening themselves up to have to answer questions that they might not want to answer. How long were you and Christine together? About 19 and a half years. And how would you characterize your relationship with Christine? For the most part, we were pretty inseparable. We were together the entire time. We didn't break up at any point. - Did you love your wife? - Very much. - Did you want to continue your marriage with your wife? - Yes. - Did you have a relationship with Juliana Perez-Magahaiz? - Yes. - Now, was Christine aware of your affair? - I don't believe she was aware of the affair between me and Juliana. - Was she aware of your previous affairs? - She was aware of at least two previous affairs. - Okay, and likewise, were you aware of her affairs? - Yes, I was also aware that she had affairs. - When he got on the stand and really disparaged his former wife Christine's good name and stomped on her grave, it revealed Brendan for who he was. - Let's talk about February 24th. - Defense attorney John Carroll leads Brendan Banfield through the key moments of that morning, like when he claims he saw this strange car in the driveway. - Well, at the point that you saw the silver Jeep, how did that make you feel, and what were you, what were you concerned about at that point? - I guess it made me very anxious. I didn't know, I didn't know what was going on. I had concerns that this was going to be, that this was going to be, an affair. - And please tell the ladies and gentlemen of the jury exactly what you observed with regard to his contact with Christine. - Christine was, I would describe as, nude and Joe Ryan was behind her. He was clothed and he was looking directly at me as I opened the door. - And why did you shoot John Ryan on February 24th? - He was attacking Christine. I mean, he was, cause, he was stabbing her. I mean, I wish I shot him earlier. - Then prosecutor Jenna Sands starts her cross-examination. This is her opportunity to really grill the defendant. That is not something a prosecutor gets to do every day. - You indicated earlier in your testimony yesterday, I think, that this affair with Juliana was really a nothing, right? This was just an affair. You had had others. This was not a relationship, correct? - I would say that it was, that it was a relationship, but it is an affair, but I wouldn't categorize it as serious. - Not serious, okay. Did you love her? - There was points that I told her that I loved her. - You told her that you loved her, but you didn't actually love her. - I would say, I would say that I had feelings for her, but they weren't nearly as strong as feelings for my wife. - During all of his testimony, the direct and the cross-examination, I think people got a glimpse of truly who Brennan Banfield is. He was smirking. He was smirking. He was talking about his relationship with Juliana. As the testimony ends, closing arguments begin. - We know that on February 24th, 2023, he executed his plan to murder his wife and an innocent stranger. They got Joe Ryan into the house and then they shot him. Brendan stabbed Christine, let her bleed out on the floor, and then dripped, smeared, and wiped her blood on Joseph Ryan, Brian's body, to make it look like he had attacked Christine. Then they called the police. Brendan let Juliana take the fall. And it took a little bit of doing, but here we are, and it's his turn to be held accountable. I don't think that there can be any reasonable doubt that Mr. Banfield has committed each and every one of the offenses that we have put before you today. - They're trying to sell you a story. - A story without any facts. And we have the facts. And those facts are in evidence. If you have doubts about the investigation, if you have doubts about how they've conducted this investigation, if you believe that there's something that's been held back in this investigation, that's reasonable doubt. I ask that you find my client not guilty of all charges. - Jurors deliberate for about nine hours before deciding Brendan Banfield's fate. - I understand we have a verdict? - Yes, Your Honor. - We, the jury on the issue, join in the case of the Commonwealth of Virginia versus Brendan Robert Banfield defendant, find the defendant guilty of aggravated murder of Joseph Ryan and Christine Banfield. - Guilty on all charges that was necessary for the family's friends and loved ones to continue to find a way to move on. - Before Brendan's sentencing, Christine's sister, shares her feelings about her terrible loss. - I feel like a different person. Like my identity has shifted in an unimaginable way. Part of who I was, who I still am, is a big sister. And in what seemed like seconds, it was taken from me, taken from us. When we were little, Christine and I would often get mistaken for twins. When I look into a mirror, I sometimes see her first, my face replaced by hers, and in a flash, she's gone. And I'm left confused by my own reflection. And I will forever carry both the grief of losing her too soon and the gratitude of having loved her for 37 years and being loved by her in return. - And now, Brendan Banfield is given one last chance to speak. - Sir, is there anything you wish to say at this time before sentence is imposed? - Yes. - Okay. - I am greatly disappointed in the legal system. The system has failed not only me, but also Christine, my daughter ,, the Bensons, and the rest of my family. I was found guilty of a crime that I did not commit. I loved her very much. Despite what you may think of my affairs, our marriage worked for us. It wasn't something that I looked to end. But I am not responsible for her death. This is not a knife that I ever held in my hand. And I never stabbed her. - Mr. Banfield, although you have been found guilty of two counts of aggravated murder, the court can only sentence you on one count of-- - Tammy regularly hauls stuff to her kids at college. - Have you met my kids? - And with BJ's gas, she gets there for less. - They call me the road warrior. - This is your home, road warrior mom, home of the save. Join for just $20 at BJ's. BJ's.com/Mosquite and save 10 cents per gallon for six months. Open soon. - Aggravated murder. The level of cruelty, calculation, and inhumanity in this case reflects something far deeper than anger or impulse. It reflects evil, which is why I carry no burden and find no hesitation in sentencing you to life without the possibility of parole, without good conduct allowances or any earned sentence credits or conditional release. - Well, it won't be justice. - It won't be justice for Joe or Christine, but it'll be the kind of justice for him to live the rest of his life thinking about the crime that he committed. - How do you describe someone like that? - Quite frankly, he's an evil guy. This was an evil crime and he thought he was smart enough to get away with it and he just wasn't. - This was a very challenging case, a very impactful case. And it was an honor to work this with all the detectives, all the investigators. I don't even think I can find the right words to say how much work and how much passion everybody poured into this case. - I cannot stop thinking about her and her daughter. She was robbed of the opportunity to grow up with that wonderful mother who wouldn't have done anything for her. She loved that child. - There are so many innocent victims. There are so many victims in this story. All because one man wanted to have it all. Brendan didn't care how many people he hurt, only if he could live the way that he wanted. But that life is over for him now. And the memories of his victims live on. - My son's legacy is one of love, of people that loved him. And it's a legacy of a man who did matter. He's not the other guy. He's not the intruder. He's not the fetish guy. His legacy is one of living out loud and being a unique human being and that being okay. It's a first-of-its-kind plan created for how Texans actually use energy. TXU Energy. Rep number 10004.