RICHMOND, Va. — An au pair who conspired with her employer-turned-lover to kill his wife and another man was sentenced to 10 years in prison Friday.
Prosecutors recommended the immediate release of Juliana Perez Magalhaes in exchange for her guilty plea to a downgraded manslaughter charge in the February 2023 killing of Joseph Ryan. She testified that she shot Ryan as Brendan Banfield stabbed Ryan’s wife, Christine, to death in the couple’s bedroom.
Instead, the judge sentenced the Brazilian woman to the harshest possible sentence.
“I know that my remorse cannot bring you peace,” Magalhães told the families of the victims. “I lost myself in a relationship and abandoned my morals and values.”
Fairfax Chief Circuit Judge Penney S. Azcarate showed no mercy.
“Let us be clear: You deserve nothing but jail time and reflection on what you did to your victims and their families. May this weigh heavily on your soul,” the judge said.
Magalhães remained silent for months before agreeing to cooperate with prosecutors in the case against them Brendan Banfield, convicted This month a jury indicted him on aggravated murder charges in the deaths of his wife and Ryan. Prosecutors said their romance continued months after the killings.
At trial, Magalhães testified that she and IRS agent Banfield created an account on the social media platform for people interested in sexual fetishes in the name of his wife, a pediatric critical care nurse. Ryan contacted the account and agreed to a sexual encounter involving a knife.
Magalhães said she and Brendan Banfield took the couple’s 4-year-old child to the basement and into the bedroom, where Brendan Banfield shot Ryan and stabbed his wife in the neck. Magalhães said when she saw Ryan move, she fired a second shot, killing him.
She wasn’t arrested until eight months later Haven’t spoken to investigators in more than a yearuntil she changed her mind as her own trial date approached.
Banfield’s lawyers scrutinize former au pair’s motives During the trial, she argued that she only told what prosecutors wanted to hear.
As part of her plea deal, her attorneys and prosecutors agreed to end her prison sentence. sentencing hearing. Chief Judge Penny Azcarat could still reject the deal. In Virginia, manslaughter is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
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