Katharina Buczek
Christine Banfield and her husband, Brendan Banfield, seemed like a happy couple from the outside.
Christine grew up on Long Island and pursued a nursing degree at Quinnipiac University, which she earned in 2007.
Meanwhile, Brendan studied accounting at St. Joseph’s University and started a children’s math tutoring center.
And in 2019, the pair relocated to Virginia following the birth of their daughter, Valerie.
There, Christine worked as an ICU nurse, and Brendan was an IRS criminal division special agent.
But in 2021, one of Christine’s patients, Rodrigo Valderrama, recalled how she wanted to hire an au pair from South America to live with her and Brandon and help care for their toddler.
“She wanted me to recommend restaurants in the area. That was her personality. She wanted the au pair to feel at home,” Rodrigo said.
Juliana Peres Magalhães was ultimately hired as an au pair by the couple. Yet on the morning of February 24, 2023, it was 22-year-old Juliana who dialed 911 and informed police about a horrific double murder at the Banfields’ Herndon, Virginia, home.
Authorities with the Fairfax County Police Department discovered 37-year-old Christine unclothed except for her socks with fatal, bleeding stab wounds to the neck. She ultimately died at a hospital later that same day.
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