Jury in High-Profile Down Under Homicide Case Tours Beach At Which Deceased Was Found

Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have been taken to the remote shore where the victim was located.

The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and placed in a sandy grave with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.

The remains were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Court Inspection to Crime Scene

The jury of 10 men and two women plus three back-up jurors visited the beach along with the presiding officer and barristers on Monday morning local time.

In a nod to the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.

Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys selected polo shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.

Location Details

The court members were led around 1.2km along the beach to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered.

Earlier, as they traveled to the site, four red and white cones showed where the vehicle had been parked.

The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was presented.

Background of the Case

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, three children and relatives.

He was not heard from until he was apprehended four years later, the state said.

Prosecution Case

It is claimed that the defendant, who was working as a nurse 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 absent.

Those objects were removed by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located tied up to a tree concealed in bushland about 100 feet from the burial site.

The weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.

But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised findings that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."

This will include evidence that genetic material recovered from a object at the location was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.

The court has previously been told testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the beach after the incident – and that its movements corresponded with those of a vehicle belonging to the accused.

Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also suggested his involvement, the prosecution has argued.

Defense Position

"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he began arguments.

The defence is has not present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer 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 subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

The defense attorney has also said he will testify about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a person of interest, was one who testified last week.

The trial was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's disappearance, even before her remains were found.

Photographs showing the witness on a walk with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were genuine and had not been altered in any manner.

The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.