Jury in High-Profile Down Under Murder Case Tours Shoreline Where Deceased Was Found
Members of the jury overseeing a high-profile Australian homicide case have been taken to the isolated shore where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow grave with minimal chance of survival, the jury has heard.
The remains were found by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Visit to Beach
The jury of 10 men and two women plus three alternates visited the location along with the judge and legal counsel on the start of the week local time.
In a nod to the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge wore a casual top, sport shorts and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defence barristers chose casual shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, four red and white cones indicated where the vehicle had been left.
The visit was intended to help the jurors become familiar with key locations in the trial and no testimony was presented.
Context of the Trial
Last week, the court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, three children and parents.
He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the state said.
Prosecution Argument
It is claimed that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions absent.
Those items were removed by the killer to avoid detection, the prosecution contend.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was located secured to a post concealed in bushland about 100 feet from the burial site.
No murder weapon was found, and no one have been found.
But the prosecution says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include evidence that genetic material recovered from a stick at the location was extremely more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The jury has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a vehicle belonging to the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the prosecution has claimed.
Defence Stance
"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a rushed single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.
The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his defendant as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – 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 suspicion.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence previously.
The trial was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her body were found.
Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.
The trial will return to the standard environment of the courthouse on the next day.