Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Australian Homicide Trial Visits Shoreline Where Victim Was Discovered
Jurors involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was discovered.
Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly attacked with a sharp object and buried in a shallow resting place with minimal hope of surviving, the court has heard.
The remains were discovered by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Inspection to Crime Scene
The jury of 10 men and two women plus several alternates attended the location along with the judge and barristers on the start of the week local time.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge wore a casual top, athletic wear and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, bottoms and headwear.
Scene Details
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several red and white cones showed where the victim's car had been left.
The visit was intended to help the panel become acquainted with important sites in the case and no official evidence was presented.
Context of the Case
Previously, the court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and relatives.
He was not heard from until he was arrested four years later, the state 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 found wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were taken by the killer to conceal evidence, the prosecution allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was found tied up to a tree hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the grave.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve testimony that genetic material recovered from a stick at the scene was extremely more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.
The jury has already heard testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his involvement, the prosecution has claimed.
Defense Stance
"As the police were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire portrayed his defendant as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."
He also foreshadowed testimony to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had witnessed 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 individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom police quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was one who testified last week.
The court heard he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her body were found.
Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the pictures were authentic and had not been doctored in any way.
The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on Tuesday.