Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Australian Homicide Trial Visits Shoreline At Which Victim Was Found
Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Queensland murder trial have been taken to the remote beach where the young woman was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a shallow grave with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has heard.
Her body were discovered by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Visit to Beach
The jury of 10 men and two women plus several back-up jurors attended the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week local time.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a casual top, athletic wear and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected casual shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The court members were led around 1.2km along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, four markers showed where the victim's car had been left.
The visit was intended to help the panel become familiar with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was presented.
Background of the Trial
Last week, the court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was apprehended four years later, the prosecution said.
State Case
It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were taken by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution allege.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found tied up to a post concealed in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.
No murder weapon was found, and no one have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will involve testimony that DNA obtained from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.
The court has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the beach after the killing – and that its travel corresponded with those of a vehicle owned by the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defense Stance
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had seen assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – 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 police quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was one who gave evidence last week.
The court was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's disappearance, even before her body were found.
Images showing Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the jury, with an specialist saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any way.
The trial will return to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.