Former IRS criminal division agent Brendan Banfield received a life‑without‑parole sentence after a Fairfax jury found him guilty of murdering his wife and a man lured through a fetish website. The trial, which drew national attention, concluded with Judge Penney Azcarate calling the punishment “harsh but justified.”

Banfield’s Brazilian au‑pair lover, Juliana Peres Magalhães, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was sentenced to 10 years, exceeding prosecutor recommendations. Prosecutors said the pair used the fetish site to entice Joseph Ryan to the Banfield home, where Banfield allegedly shot Ryan and stabbed his wife, Christine, to stage a rescue.

During sentencing, Banfield proclaimed his innocence, claiming ignored expert testimony. Magalhães testified that she fired the fatal shot but that Banfield orchestrated the plot. The case underscores the severe penalties for aggravated murder in Virginia and the courts’ willingness to impose maximum terms for conspiratorial killings.