US man who plotted with au pair to murder wife given life sentence

Article excerpt

Brendan Banfield, a former IRS law enforcement officer, received a life sentence without parole Friday for murdering his wife Christine and Joseph Ryan, a man he lured to their Virginia home to serve as a fall guy. Banfield was having an affair with the family's Brazilian au pair, setting in motion a scheme that resulted in two deaths. The case exposed how Banfield, trained in law enforcement, weaponized that knowledge to construct a false narrative around the killings. His conviction marks the culmination of an investigation that unraveled the coordinated plot between Banfield and his mistress.