Jury in High-Profile Australian Murder Trial Visits Shoreline Where Deceased Was Discovered
Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Australian murder trial have traveled to the isolated beach where the young woman was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow grave with little or no chance of survival, the court has heard.
The remains were discovered by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The jury of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors visited the beach along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning local time.
In a nod to 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 lead prosecution and defence barristers chose casual shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.
Location Details
The court members were led around 1.2km along the beach to observe where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four red and white cones showed where the vehicle had been parked.
The trip was designed to help the panel become familiar with important sites in the trial and no official evidence was given.
Context of the Case
Previously, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, family and relatives.
He was out of contact until he was arrested years after, the state said.
Prosecution Argument
It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions absent.
Those items were removed by the killer to conceal evidence, prosecutors allege.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was located secured to a tree hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the grave.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will include evidence that DNA recovered from a object at the scene was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.
The court has already heard evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his guilt, the state has argued.
Defense Stance
"As the police were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.
The defence is has not provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."
He also hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."
The defense attorney has also said he will testify about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was one who testified last week.
The court heard he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his partner's vanishing, prior to her remains were discovered.
Images showing the witness on a hike with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the pictures were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.
The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.
