A former IRS agent accused of murdering his wife so that he could run away with his Brazilian au pair appeared to sob during his trial Wednesday when shown video of police telling him his wife was dead.
Brendan Banfield, 40, is accused of killing his wife, Christine, and another man, Joseph Ryan, in 2023 as part of an elaborate plot.
Prosecutors contend that Banfield created a fake profile for his wife on a fetish website and then used that profile to lure a man to the Washington D.C. home under the guise of acting out a rape fantasy, CBS News reported. Banfield then killed his wife and the man, blaming the man for his wife's death. As part of the fantasy, prosecutors say the man was told to bring a knife.
"He thought Christine was a terrible mother. He wanted her out of the picture," Chief Deputy Commonwealth's Attorney Jenna Sands said according to the network.
The New York Post reported that Banfield had begun an affair with the couple's Brazilian au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, 25. Magalhães pled guilty to manslaughter charges and testified against Banfield.
Several months after the murder, Magalhães, moved her lingerie into the master bedroom and began replacing pictures of Christine, the New York Post reported.
In testimony, Magalhães said that on the day of the killing, the pair left the home and waited in separate locations for Ryan to arrive. After he entered the home, the pair returned, took Banfield's daughter to the basement, and went to the bedroom. "When I got to the bedroom, he yelled, 'Police officer,'" Magalhães said of Brendan Banfield according to CBS News. "Christine yelled back at Brendan, saying, 'Brendan! He has a knife!' That's when Brendan first shot Joe."
Magalhães testified that after shooting Ryan, Banfield stabbed his wife to death.
On Wednesday, bodycam footage of Banfield being told that his wife had died was shown, the New York Post reported. In the video, Banfield is told his wife died and then the they discuss the amount of blood loss and her wounds.
"I was trying to apply pressure," Banfield interrupted the doctor at one point, the New York Post reported. The doctor replies that the wounds were enormous and numerous and that neck wounds are not compressible.
The newspaper reported that as the video played, Banfield lowered his head, appearing to cry.
