Jury in Prominent Australian Homicide Case Visits Beach At Which Deceased Was Found
Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have been taken to the remote shore where the young woman was discovered.
Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly attacked with a sharp object and placed in a shallow resting place with minimal chance of survival, the court has heard.
Her body were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Visit to Beach
The panel of 12 individuals plus three back-up jurors visited the location along with the judge and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, the judge opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers chose polo shirts, shorts and baseball caps.
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 red and white cones showed where the victim's car had been left.
The trip was intended to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was given.
Background of the Trial
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and parents.
He was not heard from until he was apprehended years after, the prosecution said.
State Case
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and belongings absent.
Those objects were taken by the killer to conceal evidence, the prosecution allege.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found tied up to a post hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include evidence that genetic material recovered from a stick at the location was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The jury has previously been told testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the beach after the incident – and that its travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the state has claimed.
Defence Position
"While authorities were finding Toyah's body, he was organizing... a rushed single journey back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he began arguments.
The defense 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 unfortunate moment."
He also hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants 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 "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence previously.
The court was informed he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her remains were found.
Photographs depicting the witness on a walk with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an expert saying he was confident the pictures were genuine and had not been altered in any manner.
The case will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.