Image courtesy of “Killer Investigations” on A&E.
The mother of Joe Ryan has come forward to defend her son’s legacy after prosecutors claimed he fell victim to a lethal murder scheme, falsely presented as a consensual erotic game.
“Joe believed in consent, and I was aware of his interest in role-playing. He was a genuinely nice person, not just someone with unusual sexual preferences. I knew the allegations were false,” explained Deirdre Fisher.
Fisher’s heartfelt remarks are part of a recent interview that airs in the new episode of A&E’s Killer Investigations. The series delves into the inquiry and conviction of former IRS criminal investigator, Brendan Banfield, who masterminded the deaths of his wife, Christine Banfield, and Ryan with assistance from the family’s au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhaes.
Tune in to the episode titled “Sex, Lies and Murder,” airing Thursday at 10 p.m. on A&E.
The case began on Feb. 24, 2023, when Banfield called 911 claiming he had shot an intruder who was attacking his wife inside their Virginia home.
“My name is Brendan Banfield, I’m a federal agent. This is my house. There’s somebody here. I shot him,” Banfield told the dispatcher.
When Fairfax County police arrived, they found Ryan dead from multiple gunshot wounds. Christine Banfield was critically injured and later died at a hospital.
Juliana Peres Magalhaes, who had been living with the family as their Brazilian au pair, initially told officers she saw a stranger attack Christine before Banfield shot him in defense of his wife.
Magalhaes appeared in a state of shock after witnessing the killing. In a scene recorded on police body cameras, the young woman described to police how she saw the stranger attacking Christine before Brendan took action:
“Brendan said please drop the knife, drop the knife because he had a knife and then he said, drop the gun to Brendan, they were yelling. I couldn’t understand. It was super fast.”
Fairfax County homicide investigators uncovered a trail of digital messages on a sexual fetish website between Joe Ryan and someone named “Anastasia9”, who appeared to be Christine Banfield. The messages discussed acting out a violent rape fantasy in the Banfield bedroom.
Christine’s friends and family were shocked by what police said they found, saying it was out of character for the highly respected nurse and mother. Joe Ryan’s mother, Deirdre Fisher, said she was aware of her son’s interest in sexual role play but knew he believed strongly in consent and would never harm another person.
Detectives discovered social media photos of Brendan and Juliana sitting intimately together in a bathtub, leading them to believe the pair were having an affair. Investigators learned that after Christine’s death Juliana had moved into the master bedroom, hanging her clothes in Christine’s closet.
Investigators believed Brendan and Juliana had set up an elaborate catfishing scheme, posing as Christine, in order to lure the unsuspecting Joe Ryan into their twisted murder plot. They wanted to kill Christine and frame Joe Ryan for her death. Both were eventually arrested and charged with the murders.
At first, Juliana refused to testify against Brendan, but agreed to plead guilty to manslaughter, facing 10 years. As she became the Commonwealth’s star witness, she recounts how Brendan urged her to help kill his wife.
“You want to divorce her?” Juliana said she asked Brendan.
“I don’t want to share my custody,” she said he responded. “It’ll be easier if she was not in the picture.”
Banfield took the stand at his own murder trial, refuting Juliana’s version of events.
“I think that it’s an absurd line of questioning for something that is not serious, that were—that a plan was made to get rid of my wife. That is absolutely crazy.”
Brendan Banfield was found guilty and sentenced to life for the killing of Christine Banfield and Joe Ryan. Danielle Hawker, sister of Christine spoke at the sentencing.
“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, in return.”
Deirdre Fisher, Joe Ryan’s mom, spoke at both Juliana Peres Magalhaes’ and Brendan Banfield’s sentencing; she spoke at length what his legacy will be.
“I believe it’s good for him to live the rest of his life thinking about the crime that he committed. And his legacy will just be prison and that he was a bad murderer.”
The A&E series “Killer Investigations” examines major homicide cases across the country. Senior producers for this episode are Beth Carey, Jennifer Tintner and Diane Kaye. Written by Brian Ross. Executive producers for Law&Crime Productions are Brian Ross and Rhonda Schwartz. Executive producers for A&E are Brad Abramson, Michael Frontain-Bryant and Elaine Frontain-Bryant.