Banfield Finishes Testimony in Wife’s Murder Trial (Full Transcript)

[00:00:00] Speaker 1: This man is accused of coming up with an elaborate plot to murder his wife and frame another man. Brendan Banfield has now finished his testimony in the trial against him, so here's what you need to know.

[00:00:10] Speaker 2: Christine said, Brendan, he has a knife.

[00:00:15] Speaker 1: Brendan Banfield testified that he came home on February 24th 2023 to find a man attacking his wife Christine. He says he shot the attacker after he saw him stab her, but prosecutors say that was a lie. Banfield concocted a plot to kill his wife and make it look like self-defence. Over four days in court, prosecutors laid out what they say really happened. Banfield was having an affair with the family's au pair, Juliana Perez Magalhaes. Prosecutors allege the two lured a stranger, Joseph Ryan, through a sexual fetish website under the guise of a violent sexual encounter with Banfield's wife. They allege the plan was to kill them both, blaming Ryan for Christine's death. On the stand, Banfield denied those claims. He testified that that morning he was having breakfast at McDonald's when Perez Magalhaes called him to say a strange car was in the driveway. Banfield says he rushed home and quietly entered the basement and rushed towards the bedroom when he heard strange sounds.

[00:01:09] Speaker 2: The impact sounds sounded forceful.

[00:01:13] Speaker 1: Banfield testified that he saw Ryan stab his wife and that he shot Ryan.

[00:01:17] Speaker 2: Christine told me that she was bleeding out, that she was sorry and that she loved me.

[00:01:24] Speaker 1: Prosecutors allege Ryan was then shot a second time by Perez Magalhaes using a different gun. Perez Magalhaes was arrested for Ryan's murder in October 2023 and a year later agreed to cooperate with prosecutors in exchange for a recommendation she be sentenced to time served. She testified earlier in the trial that the crime scene was staged by Banfield, who concocted the alleged scheme to get rid of his wife. Banfield continued to deny all allegations against him. Closing arguments in the case are expected to be heard on January 30th.