Jury in Prominent Down Under Homicide Trial Visits Shoreline Where Deceased Was Found
Members of the jury overseeing a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has heard.
The remains were found by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Jury Inspection to Crime Scene
The jury of 12 individuals plus three alternates attended the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a nod to the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge wore a casual top, athletic wear and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, bottoms and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The court members were guided around 1.2km along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the victim's car had been parked.
The visit was intended to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no testimony was given.
Background of the Case
Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was arrested years after, the prosecution said.
State Case
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions absent.
Those items were taken by the killer to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was found tied up to a tree concealed in shrubland about 100 feet from the burial site.
No murder weapon was found, and no one have been identified.
But the state says the evidence – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve evidence that genetic material obtained from a stick at the scene was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.
The jury has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defence Stance
"As the police were discovering Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a rushed one way trip back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his defendant as a "calm" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had seen two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about other people "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.
Further Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities excluded as a possible suspect, was one who testified previously.
The trial was informed he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, prior to her body were discovered.
Images showing Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the jury, with an specialist saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been doctored in any way.
The trial will resume to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.