Stolen Innocence: A FOX 5 Documentary

A quiet Fairfax County neighborhood. A trusted au pair. A marriage hiding dark secrets. In a new podcast from FOX 5 DC, we take you inside the courtroom as the murder trial of Brendan Banfield begins — a case prosecutors say was fueled by an illicit affair and an unthinkable plan. Jurors are hearing explosive testimony about a secret relationship, an alleged plot to stage a violent home invasion, and the moment everything went wrong — leaving two people dead and a child inside the house. We break down what prosecutors allege happened, what the defense says you shouldn’t believe, and why the au pair’s testimony could determine everything. FOX 5 DC's Bob Barnard, Chad Ricardo and Vernon Miles walk through the evidence, the unanswered questions, and the emotional testimony that has already stunned the courtroom — setting the stage for a trial expected to last weeks and captivate the region. This is the story of trust betrayed, desire turned deadly, and a jury now tasked with finding the truth. SUBSCRIBE TODAY to The Banfield Trial: Unfiltered Courtroom Notes, and be sure to watch the trial LIVE on FOX LOCAL, FOX 5 DC's YouTube and TikTok. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the latest True Crime DMV documentary, FOX 5’s Jacqueline Matter speaks with several victims from the area who share the horrific experiences they had within the walls of these privately-run youth residential facilities that claim to "cure" young people who struggle with everything from substance abuse to emotional problems. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Host Jacqueline Matter going behind the scenes of a local DNA lab, Parabon Nanolabs, to learn how cold cases are solved. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the seventh and final episode, Judge Lynn Leibovitz explains her reasons for acquitting Joe Price, Dylan Ward and Victor Zaborsky in the murder of Robert Wone in a 38-page decision. Leibovitz going into extensive detail on what she thought of the Intruder Theory, the knife found at the scene and the prosecutions claim there was a long delay in reporting the murder. In the end, she called it a "math problem.” Defense attorney Bernie Grimm discusses the defense team’s reaction to the verdict while prosecutor Glenn Kirschner explains why the case has left him haunted. Robert's widow Kathy, who declined to be interviewed, instead lets her feelings be known through a statement saying, "my overwhelming feelings toward them is not anger or hate, but of immeasurable sadness.” Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Episode 6 we cover the opening statements, the first few weeks of the trial and each side’s take on the knife found at the scene. Was it the murder weapon or a plant? Three experts - including famed forensic scientist Henry Lee - weigh-in. Defense attorney Bernie Grimm and prosecutor Glenn Kirschner discuss their strategies, and, for the first time, we explore the break-in at the Swann Street house in the weeks after the murder. Could there really be a nexus between the men arrested for the burglary and the murder of Robert Wone? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Prosecutor Glenn Kirschner explains why the US Attorney’s Office chose to arrest Dylan Ward first in the murder of Robert Wone and wait days before arresting Joe Price and Victor Zaborsky. Kirschner also explains the “big ticket” mistake made by evidence technicians looking for blood inside the Swann Street house while Defense Attorney Bernie Grimm goes in-depth explaining another possible explanation for the murder. It’s a theory that never made it into court. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Episode 4 of Missing Pieces: Mystery on Swann Street, Prosecutor Glenn Kirschner takes us deep inside the case. "We had the most curious crime scene I have seen in my 30 years as a prosecutor," Kirschner told FOX 5’s Paul Wagner. In his first extensive comments in the case in nine years, Kirschner explains why he thinks the scene was cleaned up before paramedics and police arrived. The man who took Joe Price, Dylan Ward and Victor Zaborsky to trial said, "We had a really sophisticated cover-up of what went on in that house and who killed Robert Wone." Missing Pieces, a FOX 5 DC True Crime/Mystery podcast, shines a light on the cases that have left us with more questions than answers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The night of the murder inside 1509 Swann Street detectives debated whether an intruder could get out of the house without making a sound on the wooden stairs. The three men who lived there told police they heard no one running from the house. Detectives also wondered why Robert Wone, a married man, was spending the night in the home of three gay men. Did he have a secret life? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

DC police do not believe the stories they are getting from Joseph Price, Victor Zaborsky and Dylan Ward about what happened inside 1509 Swann St. the night Robert Wone was killed. The three told detectives an intruder entered the house, took a knife from the kitchen and stabbed Wone in a second-floor guest bedroom. But detectives suspect the men, who called themselves a family, got their stories straight before calling 911. The three are questioned for hours at homicide and are released without charges. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On Aug. 2, 2006, a 32-year-old married attorney is found stabbed to death inside the home of a friend in Washington, D.C. The three gay men who lived there said an intruder did it. But police found no evidence of an intruder and suspected the scene had been cleaned up. Even more chilling, an autopsy found Robert Wone had been sexually assaulted, had no defensive wounds to his hands and may have been drugged before his death. Joseph Price, Victor Zaborsky and Dylan Ward were all charged with obstruction of justice, conspiracy to obstruct justice and tampering with evidence but were acquitted at trial. Thirteen years later the mystery endures. Who murdered Wone and why? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices