Jury in High-Profile Australian Murder Trial Tours Beach Where Victim Was Found
Jurors involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have been taken to the remote shore where the victim was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a sandy resting place with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.
The remains were discovered by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The panel of 10 men and two women plus three alternates visited the beach along with the judge and barristers on the start of the week in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defence barristers chose casual shirts, shorts and headwear.
Scene Details
The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.
Earlier, as they arrived by bus, several markers showed where the vehicle had been parked.
The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no testimony was given.
Context of the Case
Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was arrested four years later, the prosecution said.
State Argument
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was found wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions absent.
Those objects were removed by the assailant to avoid detection, the prosecution 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.
The weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the prosecution says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised findings that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include testimony that genetic material recovered from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.
The jury has already heard evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone left the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a vehicle owned by the accused.
Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also suggested his involvement, the state has claimed.
Defence Stance
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he opened his case.
The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister Greg McGuire portrayed his client as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."
He also hinted at evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom police 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 been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his partner's disappearance, prior to her remains were found.
Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was confident the pictures were authentic and had not been altered in any way.
The trial will resume to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.