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Photos reveal Virginia nanny took slain wife’s place in master bedroom weeks after love triangle murders
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The Virginia trial of Brendan Banfield, the ex-IRS agent accused of killing his wife and a stranger as part of an elaborate scheme to cover up his extramarital affair with the family’s nanny, entered its third day of testimony on Thursday, with jurors hearing how the husband and father quickly moved his mistress into the couple’s bedroom shortly after the deaths.
Banfield is charged with aggravated murder in the February 2023 killings of his wife, Christine Banfield, and Joseph Ryan inside their home in Herndon, Virginia, an affluent suburb of Washington, D.C. Prosecutors allege he orchestrated the killings to cover up his relationship with the family’s au pair, Juliana Peres Magalhães.
Magalhães has since pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter in October 2024 and will be sentenced after Banfield’s trial.
VIRGINIA NANNY’S JAILHOUSE LETTERS REVEAL CONFLICTING LOYALTIES IN LOVE TRIANGLE MURDER TRIAL
Brendan Banfield looks on during his double murder trial in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner, Pool)
On Thursday, jurors heard from Fairfax County Sgt. Kenner Fortner, who testified that he entered the home shortly after the killings in February 2023, when he photographed “red, lingerie-style clothing items” and a yellow T-shirt with green trim in Magalhães’ bedroom closet.
When he returned to Banfield’s home eight months later, he noticed the items – along with a framed portrait of Banfield and Magalhães – had been moved into the primary bedroom, where prosecutors say the murders occurred, pointing to the same yellow T-shirt with green trim.
Fairfax County Sgt. Kenner Fortner testified that months after the killings of Christine Banfield and Joseph Ryan, he returned to the home to find Juliana Peres Magalhães’ personal items moved into the master bedroom Christine and Brendan Banfield previously shared. Fortner pointed to a photo on the couple’s nightstand that showed Banfield and Magalhães smiling for a picture. (FOX 5)
“They had gotten new flooring, new bedroom furniture,” Fortner testified. “Pictures that had once featured Brendan and Christine had been taken down and replaced with Brendan and Juliana together.”
VIRGINIA NANNY TESTIFIES AFFAIR, ALIBI PLAN ENDED IN BLOODSHED AFTER LOVE TRIANGLE TORE APART AFFLUENT FAMILY
Fairfax County Sgt. Kenner Fortner testified in the murder trial of Brendan Banfield that when he first entered the family’s home shortly after the February 2023 murders, he noticed “red, lingerie-style clothing items” and a yellow T-shirt with green trim in Juliana Peres Magalhães’ bedroom closet. (FOX 5)
Fairfax County Sgt. Kenner Fortner later testified in the murder trial of Brendan Banfield that when he returned to the family’s home eight months later, the “red, lingerie-style clothing items” and a yellow T-shirt with green trim belonging to Juliana Peres Magalhães had been moved into the master bedroom Banfield previously shared with his deceased wife, Christine Banfield. (FOX 5)
Jurors then heard from Det. Terry Leach, the lead crime scene detective assigned to the case, who testified that he arrived on scene to find both Ryan and Christine’s lifeless bodies in the master bedroom.
As Leach was performing his initial investigation, he located a knife tucked into the bed and two handguns, which he later determined had been moved from their original positions after authorities arrived on scene and began trying to resuscitate Ryan.
“The knife was found underneath the blankets, between the edge of the blanket in the bed,” Leach said. “[The] only thing we could see when we arrived was the handle. And the knife was on its backside – so it’s blade up – and then the handle is towards the bed.”
Det. Terry Leach, the lead crime scene detective assigned to the case, testified that when he arrived at the crime scene, he located a knife tucked into the bed and two handguns, which he later determined had been moved from their original positions after authorities arrived on scene and began trying to resuscitate Joseph Ryan. (FOX 5)
Additionally, the prosecution called Matthew Niederriter, a salesman who told the court that he was hired by Banfield to install triple-pane windows throughout the home in August 2022, with the actual work taking place later the same year.
AFFLUENT VIRGINIA SUBURB ROCKED AS TRIAL BEGINS FOR EX-FEDERAL AGENT HUSBAND IN NANNY LOVE-TRIANGLE MURDERS
Det. Terry Leach, the lead crime scene detective assigned to the case, testified that when he arrived at the crime scene, he located a knife tucked into the bed and two handguns, which he later determined had been moved from their original positions after authorities arrived on scene and began trying to resuscitate Joseph Ryan. (FOX 5)
Nierderriter testified that while most customers are fine with only purchasing double-pane windows, Banfield was specifically interested in installing triple-pane windows throughout the house.
“When someone goes to a triple pane, that’s another level,” Nierderriter said. “And that is a type of level where they’re trying to do more than just protect the house from the sun.”
On cross-examination, defense attorney John Carroll asked the salesman if Banfield had inquired about noise-cancellation related to a nearby fire station or Washington Dulles International Airport when purchasing the windows, to which Nierderriter answered, “No.”
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Juliana Peres Magalhães testifies during the double murder trial for Brendan Banfield in Fairfax County Circuit Court, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026, in Fairfax, Va. (AP Photo/Tom Brenner, Pool)
Earlier this week, Magalhães told jurors that Banfield had installed the windows in an effort to mask the screams during the murders, going as far as to run experiments in which Magalhães yelled from inside the home while Banfield investigated if she could be heard from the outside.
The prosecution also played surveillance video from a Herndon McDonald’s, where Banfield could be seen inside his vehicle in the restaurant’s drive-through.
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Magalhães previously testified that she and Banfield lured Ryan to the home under the guise of a consensual rape fantasy after posing as Christine on a fetish website, in an effort to make his wife’s death appear as though she was being attacked by a home intruder.
Jurors in Brendan Banfield’s murder trial were shown surveillance video of Banfield in a nearby McDonald’s drive-through shortly before the alleged murders of his wife, Christine Banfield, and Joseph Ryan. (FOX 5)
According to Magalhães, Banfield went to a nearby McDonald’s and awaited her call that Ryan had arrived at the home before returning to shoot the man and stab his wife to death.
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“After calling Christine, I called Brendan, and then he picked up the phone and I was telling him, ‘Stay away, there’s somebody strange and come to the house, I’m scared,’” Magalhães said. “He told me to stay there. He will be coming home, and he will try to call Christine.”
Christine Banfield was stabbed to death in the bedroom of her Fairfax County, Virginia, home. (Facebook)
The calls were corroborated by logs pulled from the couple’s cellphones, in which prosecutors pointed out several calls made between Banfield and Magalhães while he was at the McDonald’s.
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According to the prosecution, Banfield allegedly staged the crime scene to appear as though it was a home invasion, with Magalhães then calling 911 to tell authorities Ryan was an intruder who had stabbed his wife.
Banfield’s attorney did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
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If convicted, Banfield would face the possibility of life in prison. The trial is expected to last four weeks. Court sessions will begin at 10 a.m. each day and run Monday through Thursday, according to court administrators.
Fox News Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten contributed to this report.
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Southeast
Family member of American killed by Cuban forces in boat shootout says he was on ‘diabolical’ mission
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The brother of an American citizen killed in a brazen boat clash with Cuban forces says his sibling was consumed by an “obsessive and diabolical” push to free the island and that “no one knew” what he was planning.
American citizen Michel Ortega Casanova, who worked as a truck driver, was one of 10 passengers on a Florida-registered boat that allegedly opened fire on Cuban soldiers in an attempt to infiltrate the island.
A Monroe County Sheriff’s Office incident report obtained by Fox News noted the boat’s owner reported it stolen Wednesday after hearing about the Cuba shootout on the news.
The owner, who did not speak English, told deputies his 24-foot vessel went missing, and he suspected an employee named Hector — who had two young daughters in Cuba — may have taken it.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio addressed an incident involving Cuban forces and a speedboat Wednesday before returning to Washington, D.C., after meetings with Caribbean Community leaders at Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport in Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis. (Jonathan Ernst/Pool/Reuters)
Ortega Casanova, who lived in the U.S. for more than two decades, was one of four killed in the attempt. He is survived by his wife, mother, brother, two sisters, daughter and unborn grandchild.
Six other passengers, all Cubans living in the U.S., were injured. It is unclear if Hector was on board.
Ortega Casanova’s brother, Misael, told The Associated Press Wednesday that his brother had an “obsessive and diabolical” pursuit for Cuba’s freedom.
“Only us Cubans who have lived over there understand [the great suffering],” Misael said.
He said “no one knew” about his brother’s plans to infiltrate the island, noting their mother is “devastated.”
“They became so obsessed that they didn’t think about the consequences nor their own lives,” Misael said.
While Ortega Casanova’s family did not recognize any of the other passengers, Misael said, “maybe [the attempt] will justify that some day Cuba will be free.”
CUBA IS APPROACHING ITS BERLIN WALL MOMENT — AMERICA MUST HELP THEM BREAK THROUGH
Cuban Coast Guard forces reported an exchange of gunfire with a U.S.-registered speedboat Wednesday. (Yamil Lage/AFP via Getty Images)
He refrained from labeling the group heroes, describing the idea as “ignorance.”
Cuban officials said many of the boat passengers, who were intercepted roughly a mile northeast of Cayo Falcones, off Cuba’s north coast, had a known history of criminal and violent activity.
Passengers Amijail Sánchez González and Leordan Enrique Cruz Gómez were wanted by Cuban authorities for their involvement in the “promotion, planning, organization, financing, support or commission of actions carried out in the national territory or in other countries, in connection with acts of terrorism,” according to the government.
Cuban politician Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla posted to X after the incident, claiming a “rigorous investigation” is being conducted to clarify the facts.
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“Cuba has had to face numerous terrorist and aggressive infiltrations originating from #EEUU since 1959, at a high cost in lives, injuries, and material damage,” Rodriguez Parrilla wrote in a post. “The defense of Cuba’s coasts, of the national territory, and of national security is an ineludible duty.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. is working to determine whether the passengers were American citizens or permanent residents.
U.S. officials said at least two of the people on the bat were U.S. citizens, and another was on a U.S. K-1 visa — which is granted to fiancées of U.S. citizens for 90 days.
“We have various different elements of the U.S. government that are trying to identify elements of the story that may not be provided to us now,” Rubio told reporters in Basseterre, St. Kitts.
“Suffice it to say, it is highly unusual to see shootouts in open sea like that. It’s not something that happens every day. It’s something, frankly, that hasn’t happened with Cuba in a very long time.”
Cuban officials said the vessel’s passengers were intercepted off the country’s northern coast. (Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto)
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Rubio said the U.S. will verify the facts independently, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Coast Guard are investigating.
Vice President JD Vance said he was briefed on the incident, and the White House is monitoring the situation.
“Hopefully it’s not as bad as we fear it could be,” Vance said.
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Florida’s Attorney General James Uthmeier said prosecutors will work with federal, state and law enforcement partners to start an investigation.
“The Cuban government cannot be trusted, and we will do everything in our power to hold these communists accountable,” Uthmeier wrote in a social media post.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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A North Carolina woman whose disappearance in 2001 triggered a 24-year search is now facing criminal charges from the year she vanished.
Michele Hundley Smith, now 63, was located Feb. 20 at an undisclosed location within North Carolina after detectives received new information about her case, the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office said.
Smith was 38 when her husband reported that she left their Eden home Dec. 9, 2001, to go Christmas shopping in Martinsville, Virginia, and never returned. Her vehicle was never found.
An extensive investigation followed, and, despite years of investigative work, her whereabouts remained unknown until last week.
The 63-year-old woman posted $2,000 bond on a failure to appear charge related to a DWI from the month before she vanished for 24 years. (Robeson County Sheriff’s Office)
Authorities said Smith told investigators she left on her own accord and referenced “domestic issues.”
Sheriff Sam Page told Fox News Digital the sheriff’s office had no prior record of domestic incidents at the home. No criminal charges are expected in her disappearance. However, following her identification, investigators discovered an outstanding order for arrest dating back to 2001.
A missing persons flyer circulated at the time of Michele Hundely Smith’s disappearance in December 2001. (Bring Michele Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
MISSING NORTH CAROLINA MOM FOUND ALIVE AFTER 24 YEARS REVEALS WHY SHE LEFT
In a statement, the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Office said that, after consultation with the District Attorney’s Office and further investigation, authorities identified an outstanding order for arrest for Smith for failure to appear.
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The order stemmed from a DWI charge issued by the Eden Police Department Nov. 11, 2001. Smith failed to appear in court Dec. 27, 2001, for that charge, the statement said.
On Feb. 25, 2026, Smith was taken into custody by the Robeson County Sheriff’s Office at the request of Rockingham County authorities. She later posted a $2,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in Rockingham County District Court March 26, 2026.
A missing mom found alive after 23 years reveals she left due to domestic issues. (Bring Michele Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
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On Thursday, the New York Post reported it had located Smith in a trailer in a rural community near the South Carolina state line. Smith told the outlet she is trying to make amends with her daughter and the family she walked out on decades ago.
“My daughter is forgiving me. We are in contact, so leave me alone,” she told the outlet.
Smith’s neighbors said she had “been here for years and years” and mostly keeps to herself.
“We asked why she didn’t come out of the house much, and she said her husband passed. He passed last year. … She was really sad about it. She said she was depressed and stayed inside,” the neighbor said.
Michele Hundely Smith disappeared after leaving her home in North Carolina to go Christmas shopping in Virginia in December 2001. (Bring Michele Hundely Smith Home/Facebook)
In a 2018 interview on “The Vanished Podcast,” her daughter, Amanda Hundley, said her mother’s marriage was unraveling under the weight of alcohol abuse, infidelity and escalating marital arguments.
Smith had recently lost her job at a veterinary practice after being fired for drinking on the job, Hundley said.
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“My dad didn’t like the fact that my mom hid her drinking. I knew about it, and I was the only one. And I felt, you know, I was young, and I felt obligated not to say anything to betray my mom,” Hundley said on the podcast.
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According to Hundley, her father suspected the drinking but did not fully understand the extent of it until after Smith vanished.
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“He said, ‘Do you know where she kept the bottles at?’ And I showed them we had a little red building outside, and it was full of rum bottles, the empties, the ones that she had already drunk,” recalled Hundley, who was 14 at the time.
The couple’s relationship had also deteriorated. Hundley said both her parents had affairs during the marriage. She described frequent arguments that “got physical a few times.”
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Atlanta-area police blast parents over vodka martini packed in school lunch: ‘That is NOT apple juice’
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An Atlanta-area police department issued a blunt notice to parents after officers claimed a child brought a vodka-based beverage to school — tucked beside Doritos in a packed lunch.
The City of South Fulton Police Department sounded off about the incident in a now-viral Facebook post, warning parents to “CHECK. THE. LUNCHBOX.”
“Say Twin… Before you send them babies off to school… CHECK. THE. LUNCHBOX. Because why are we getting reports of juice boxes sitting next to… Cutwater margaritas??” the department wrote.
Officials also shared a photo of the alleged lunchbox, containing what appears to be a child’s lunch, Doritos and a Cutwater Lemon Drop Martini.
The police department shared a photo of a Cutwater canned cocktail in a lunchbox. (City of South Fulton Police Department via Facebook)
“That is NOT Capri Sun. That is NOT Apple Juice. That is a whole ‘Parent had a long night’ starter pack,” the department wrote. “Now little Johnny done pulled up to 3rd period talking about: ‘Who want fruit snacks?’ knowing good and well he got a Lemon Drop Martini in the zipper pocket.”
Cutwater Lemon Drop Martinis, as found in the lunchbox, are 11% ABV ready-to-drink cocktails made with vodka, triple sec, lemon juice and natural flavors.
They come in 12-ounce cans, similar in appearance to a soda can.
The City of South Fulton Police Department issued a statement after the apparent mishap. (City of South Fulton Police Department via Facebook)
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The department said it understands mornings can be hectic, but issued a stern notice to parents to “TIGHTEN UP.”
“Your child shouldn’t be the only one in the cafeteria with a beverage that requires an ID,” authorities wrote. “If it says 12% ABV… it does NOT belong next to a PB&J.”
Officials also provided a “quick parent checklist,” with items including: “Homework,” “Lunch packed,” and “Alcoholic beverages.”
Boxes of Cutwater Tiki Rum Mai Tai and Strawberry Margarita canned cocktails. (Gado/Getty Images)
“Check the lunchbox before the Fulton County Schools Police resource officers gotta do inventory at recess,” the department added.
It is unclear if any parents or students were disciplined in relation to the mix-up.
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Fulton County Schools did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
The City of South Fulton, Georgia, is a rapidly growing municipality located about 20 minutes from Atlanta and Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.
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