Jury in High-Profile Australian Murder Case Visits Beach At Which Victim Was Found
Jurors overseeing a high-profile Queensland homicide case have been taken to the isolated beach where the young woman was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy resting place with minimal hope of surviving, the court has been told.
The remains were found by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Inspection to Beach
The jury of 10 men and two women plus three back-up jurors attended the location along with the judge and legal counsel on the start of the week in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, the judge opted for a casual top, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, several red and white cones showed where the victim's car had been parked.
The visit was intended to help the jurors become familiar with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was given.
Background of the Trial
Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was arrested four years later, the state said.
State Argument
It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and belongings missing.
Those objects were removed by the killer to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was found secured to a post hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised findings that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve testimony that DNA recovered from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.
The court has already heard evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the beach 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 state has argued.
Defence Position
"As the police were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."
He also hinted at evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an undercover officer he had seen assailants 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 other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Further Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who testified last week.
The trial was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, prior to her remains were found.
Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich 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 confident the pictures were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.
The trial will resume to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.