Jury in Prominent Down Under Murder Case Tours Shoreline At Which Deceased Was Discovered
Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and placed in a shallow resting place with little or no chance of survival, the court has heard.
Her body were found by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of shoreline 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.
Jury Inspection to Beach
The panel of 12 individuals plus three alternates attended the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, the judge wore a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys selected casual shirts, shorts and baseball caps.
Scene Details
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, several markers indicated where the vehicle had been left.
The trip was designed to help the jurors become acquainted with important sites in the trial and no official evidence was presented.
Context of the Case
Last week, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were found, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and relatives.
He was out of contact until he was apprehended four years later, the state said.
Prosecution Argument
It is claimed that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those objects were taken by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found secured to a tree hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the burial site.
The weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include testimony that DNA obtained from a object at the scene was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.
The jury has previously been told evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the scene after the incident – and that its movements corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defence Position
"As the police were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.
The defense is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer described his defendant as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will testify about other people "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.
Further Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence previously.
The trial heard he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his partner's disappearance, even before her body were discovered.
Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.
The case will resume to the standard environment of the courtroom on Tuesday.
