"She Wrote She Was Heartbroken For Doing This To Brendan" — FBI Agent On Au Pair's Credibility
"She Wrote She Was Heartbroken For Doing This To Brendan" — FBI Agent On Au Pair's Credibility  
Podcast: Hidden Killers With Tony Brueski | True Crime News & Commentary
Published On: Tue Jan 13 2026
Description: Juliana Peres Magalhaes is the prosecution's star witness against Brendan Banfield. She's also a woman who wrote from jail that she was "heartbroken" for what she was doing to him — and that she still loved him. But she wanted to go home to her mother. So she took a deal. Retired FBI Special Agent Jennifer Coffindaffer returns to Hidden Killers to break down the credibility of a cooperating witness whose freedom depends on conviction. Juliana told police the same story Brendan did for a year: Ryan was an intruder, they shot him in self-defense. Then she flipped. Now she says Brendan masterminded a murder plot and handed her a gun the morning of the killings. Her plea deal recommends time served and deportation to Brazil. Her sentencing is scheduled after Banfield's trial. Coffindaffer has evaluated cooperating witnesses throughout her FBI career. She knows the difference between someone finally telling the truth and someone saying whatever gets them out. In this interview, she explains what corroborating evidence prosecutors need to make Juliana's testimony stick, how the defense will attack her on cross-examination, and what the jury should be watching for. The prosecution says Juliana was a reluctant participant who was told it was "too late to back out." The defense says she's lying to save herself. Which version will the jury believe?#BrendanBanfield #JulianaPeresMagalhaes #HiddenKillers #JenniferCoffindaffer #AuPairMurder #FBI #StarWitness #PleaDeal #TrueCrimePodcast #WitnessCredibilityJoin Our SubStack For AD-FREE ADVANCE EPISDOES & EXTRAS!: https://hiddenkillers.substack.com/Want to comment and watch this podcast as a video? Check out our YouTube Channel. https://www.youtube.com/@hiddenkillerspodInstagram https://www.instagram.com/hiddenkillerspod/Facebook https://www.facebook.com/hiddenkillerspod/Tik-Tok https://www.tiktok.com/@hiddenkillerspodX Twitter https://x.com/tonybpodListen Ad-Free On Apple Podcasts Here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/true-crime-today-premium-plus-ad-free-advance-episode/id1705422872This publication contains commentary and opinion based on publicly available information. All individuals are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. Nothing published here should be taken as a statement of fact, health or legal advice.