Jury in Prominent Down Under Homicide Case Tours Shoreline At Which Victim Was Discovered
Members of the jury overseeing a high-profile Australian homicide case have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was located.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly attacked with a sharp object and placed in a sandy resting place with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.
The remains were discovered by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the popular destinations 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 several alternates visited the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose casual shirts, shorts and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several red and white cones showed 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 heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, family and parents.
He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the state said.
Prosecution Argument
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, the prosecution contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found tied up to a tree concealed in bushland about 100 feet from the burial site.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the state says the evidence – though circumstantial – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include evidence 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 public.
The court has already heard evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a vehicle owned by the defendant.
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 hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he began arguments.
The defence is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer portrayed his defendant as a "calm" 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 apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Further Evidence
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was among those who testified previously.
The court was informed he was an initial person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his partner's disappearance, prior to her body were found.
Photographs showing the witness on a walk with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were authentic and had not been doctored in any manner.
The trial will return to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.
