On the morning of February 24, 2023, police in Herndon, Virginia, responded to 911 calls from a Stable Brook Way home and found Joseph Nathan Ryan, 39, dead of multiple gunshot wounds and 37-year-old Christine Banfield stabbed to death. Christine was taken to a hospital and later died. Brendan Banfield, Christine’s husband, initially told dispatchers he had shot an unknown intruder who was attacking his wife. A 4-year-old child and the family’s live-in au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães, 23, were at the residence.

Investigators questioned the home invasion account after finding no signs of forced entry. In October 2023 Peres Magalhães was arrested and charged with second-degree murder in Ryan’s death. In September 2024 Brendan Banfield was arrested and charged with the aggravated murders of both his wife and Ryan.

Brendan Banfield was convicted by a jury in February 2026 of the murders of Joseph Ryan and Christine Banfield. Days later Peres Magalhães was sentenced to 10 years in prison under her plea deal; Ryan’s mother spoke at the sentencing about her loss. Does anyone have information about Joseph Ryan’s movements or contacts in the days before February 24, 2023?