Jury in Prominent Australian Homicide Case Tours Beach At Which Deceased Was Found

Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Queensland murder trial have been taken to the isolated beach where the young woman was discovered.

The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow grave with minimal hope of surviving, the court has heard.

Her body were discovered by a family member the next 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 Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Inspection to Beach

The jury of 12 individuals plus several alternates attended the location along with the presiding officer and barristers on the start of the week local time.

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

Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected polo shirts, shorts and headwear.

Location Details

The jurors were guided around 1.2km north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.

Earlier, as they arrived by bus, several markers indicated where the victim's car had been left.

The visit was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the case and no official evidence was given.

Context of the Trial

Previously, the court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and parents.

He was out of contact until he was arrested four years later, the state said.

State Argument

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

The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and belongings missing.

Those items were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was located secured to a tree concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.

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

But the prosecution says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will include testimony that genetic material obtained from a object at the location was 3.8 billion times more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.

The jury has previously been told testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its travel corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.

Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his involvement, the state has argued.

Defense Position

"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he opened his case.

The defence is yet to provided testimony, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer portrayed his defendant as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."

He also foreshadowed testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."

Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.

Additional Evidence

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities excluded as a possible suspect, was one who gave evidence last week.

The court heard he was an initial person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her remains were found.

Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.

The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on Tuesday.