Jury in Prominent Down Under Murder Trial Visits Shoreline At Which Victim Was Found
Jurors involved in a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have been taken to the isolated beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy grave with little or no hope of surviving, the court has been told.
Her body were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Court Inspection to Crime Scene
The jury of 12 individuals plus three alternates attended the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a nod to the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected casual shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the victim's car had been left.
The trip was designed to help the jurors become familiar with key locations in the case and no official evidence was presented.
Context of the Trial
Previously, the court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and relatives.
He was not heard from until he was apprehended years after, the state said.
State Argument
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was found wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those objects were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was found tied up to a tree concealed in bushland about 100 feet from the burial site.
No murder weapon was found, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the state says the evidence – though indirect – was made up of proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will include testimony that DNA obtained from a object at the scene was extremely more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The court has previously been told evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements matched those of a vehicle owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his guilt, the state has claimed.
Defence Position
"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, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also hinted at evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
The defense attorney has also said he will testify about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities excluded as a person of interest, was among those 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, even before her remains were found.
Photographs depicting the witness on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any way.
The case will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.