Jury in High-Profile Down Under Murder Case Visits Beach At Which Deceased Was Discovered
Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a sharp object and buried in a sandy grave with little or no chance of survival, the court has been told.
Her body were found by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of shoreline between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Inspection to Crime Scene
The panel of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors visited the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and sweltering heat, the judge wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four markers showed where the vehicle had been left.
The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the case and no official evidence was presented.
Background of the Trial
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was arrested four years later, the state said.
Prosecution Case
It is claimed that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was discovered wearing a bikini, with her attire and belongings missing.
Those objects were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was found tied up to a tree concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the prosecution says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will include evidence that DNA recovered from a object at the location was extremely more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The jury has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone left the beach after the incident – and that its movements corresponded with those of a vehicle belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also suggested his guilt, the state has claimed.
Defense Position
"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defence is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed testimony to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had witnessed two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will testify about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who testified previously.
The court heard he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her remains were discovered.
Photographs showing the witness on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the pictures were authentic and had not been altered in any way.
The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on the next day.
