Brendan Banfield sentenced to life in prison in 'au pair affair' murders
Brendan Banfield sentenced to life in prison in au pair affair murders
Jessica Kronzer | jkronzer@wtop.com
Neal Augenstein | naugenstein@wtop.com
June 5, 2026, 12:12 PM
A judge in Fairfax County, Virginia, has sentenced Brendan Banfield to life in prison with no chance of parole in the 2023 au pair affair murders of his wife and another man.
Prosecutors said Banfield was in love with the familys au pair and the two plotted to murder Christine Banfield and blame her death on a stranger, Joseph Ryan, who they lured to the familys home.
Banfield was convicted in
convicted in February of two counts of aggravated murder. He has maintained his innocence throughout the legal process, including during the sentencing hearing Friday.
Fairfax County Circuit Court Chief Judge Penney Azcarate, who presided over his trial, appointed Banfield an appellate attorney after imposing his sentence Friday.
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Jessica Kronzer
Jessica Kronzer graduated from James Madison University in May 2021 after studying media and politics. She enjoys covering politics, advocacy and compelling human-interest stories.
jkronzer@wtop.com
@kronzer_news
Neal Augenstein
Neal Augenstein has been a general assignment reporter with WTOP since 1997. He says he looks forward to coming to work every day, even though that means waking up at 3:30 a.m.
naugenstein@wtop.com
@AugensteinWTOP