Deirdre Fisher, mother of murder victim Joe Ryan, is speaking out to restore her son's reputation after prosecutors described how he was lured into a deadly scheme. The comments appear in a new A&E episode about the killings of Ryan and Christine Banfield.
Fisher said her son believed strongly in consent and would never harm anyone, despite messages found on a fetish website that prosecutors tied to the plot. "Joe was about consent and I knew he was about role play. He was a good person," she said.
The case began on Feb. 24, 2023, when Brendan Banfield called 911 from his Virginia home claiming he had shot an intruder attacking his wife. Both Christine Banfield and Ryan died, while au pair Juliana Peres Magalhaes initially told police a stranger was responsible.
Investigators later determined Banfield and Magalhaes had an affair and used a fake online persona to draw Ryan into the house. Banfield was convicted and sentenced to life in prison, while Magalhaes pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
Fisher also addressed Banfield's sentence, saying his legacy would be prison. The episode featuring her interview, titled "Sex, Lies and Murder," is set to air Thursday at 10 p.m. on A&E.
