Panel of Jurors in Prominent Down Under Murder Case Visits Beach At Which Victim Was Found

Jurors involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the remote beach where the victim was located.

Toyah Cordingley was multiple times stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy resting place with little or no chance of survival, the court has been told.

The remains were discovered by her father 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 murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Inspection to Beach

The jury of 10 men and two women plus three back-up jurors visited the location along with the presiding officer and barristers on the start of the week in Queensland.

In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.

Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, shorts and baseball caps.

Scene Particulars

The court members were led around 1.2km north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered.

Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the vehicle had been left.

The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with important sites in the case and no official evidence was presented.

Background of the Trial

Last week, the court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and parents.

He was out of contact until he was apprehended four years later, the prosecution said.

State Case

It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.

The pharmacy worker was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and belongings absent.

Those items were taken by the assailant to conceal evidence, prosecutors contend.

Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was found secured to a post concealed in shrubland about 100 feet from the burial site.

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

But the prosecution says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of findings that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."

This will involve testimony that DNA recovered from a stick at the scene was extremely more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.

The jury has previously been told evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the beach after the incident – and that its travel corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.

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

Defense Position

"While authorities were finding Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a rushed single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.

The defence is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his client as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."

He also hinted at evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had seen assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "gravest error."

The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was among those who testified last week.

The court was informed he was an initial person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his partner's vanishing, prior to her body were found.

Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the court, with an specialist saying he was certain 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 Tuesday.