🔗 Share this article

Jurors overseeing a high-profile Australian homicide case have traveled to the remote shore where the victim was discovered.

Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly stabbed with a bladed weapon and buried in a sandy resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has been told.

The remains were found by her father 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 killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.

Court Visit to Beach

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

In a nod to the hot climate and sweltering heat, the judge opted for a casual top, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defence barristers chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.

Scene Particulars

The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.

Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several markers showed where the victim's car had been left.

The trip was intended to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the case and no testimony was presented.

Background of the Case

Last week, the court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and relatives.

He was not heard from until he was arrested years after, the state said.

Prosecution Argument

It is claimed that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

The victim was discovered wearing a bikini, with her attire and belongings absent.

Those items were taken by the killer to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was found tied up to a post concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the grave.

The weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been found.

But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of findings that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve testimony that DNA obtained from a stick at the scene was 3.8 billion times more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.

The jury has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone left the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.

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

Defense Position

"As the police were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he began arguments.

The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."

He also hinted at testimony to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."

Mr McGuire has also said he will testify about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.

Additional Evidence

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

The court was informed 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 body were discovered.

Images showing the witness on a walk with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were genuine and had not been doctored in any way.

The case will resume to the standard environment of the courtroom on the next day.