Jury in Prominent Australian Murder Trial Visits Shoreline At Which Victim Was Discovered
Jurors involved in a widely publicized Australian murder trial have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a sandy grave with little or no hope of surviving, the court has been told.
The remains were discovered by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline 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 Far North Queensland.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The panel of 12 individuals plus several alternates attended the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week local time.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, Justice Lincoln Crowley opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The jurors were guided around 1.2km north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the vehicle had been parked.
The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the case and no official evidence was given.
Background of the Case
Previously, the court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were found, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and relatives.
He was not heard from until he was arrested four years later, the state said.
State Argument
It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions absent.
Those objects were removed by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.
Her pet, 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 found, and no one have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of findings that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include testimony 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 random member of the public.
The court has previously been told testimony 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 belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the state has argued.
Defence Position
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer described his client as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also hinted at evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had witnessed assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who testified previously.
The court heard he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's disappearance, prior to her remains were discovered.
Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the jury, with an expert saying he was certain the pictures were genuine and had not been altered in any way.
The trial will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.
