Jury in Prominent Australian Murder Case Visits Beach At Which Victim Was Discovered

Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Australian murder trial have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was located.

The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a shallow resting place with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.

Her body were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline 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 Far North Queensland.

Jury Inspection to Crime Scene

The panel of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors attended the beach along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.

In a nod to the hot climate and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the lead prosecution and defence barristers selected 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 body were discovered.

Earlier, as they traveled to the site, four red and white cones showed where the victim's car had been parked.

The visit was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with important sites in the case and no testimony was given.

Background of the Trial

Last week, the court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, three children and relatives.

He was not heard from until he was apprehended years after, the prosecution said.

State Case

It is claimed that the defendant, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

The pharmacy worker was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions absent.

Those items were removed by the killer to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found secured to a tree concealed in shrubland about 30 metres from the burial site.

No murder weapon was found, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.

But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve evidence that DNA recovered from a stick at the scene was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.

The court has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the scene after the killing – and that its travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.

Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also suggested his guilt, the state has argued.

Defense Position

"As the police were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he began arguments.

The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."

He also hinted at testimony to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an undercover officer he had seen assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, the witness, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was one who testified previously.

The court was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's disappearance, prior to her body were found.

Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.

The case will resume to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on Tuesday.