Jury in Prominent Down Under Murder Case Tours Shoreline At Which Victim Was Found
Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have been taken to the remote beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy resting place with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.
The remains were found by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The panel of 10 men and two women plus several back-up jurors attended the location along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge 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, bottoms and headwear.
Scene Details
The jurors were led around 1.2km along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Earlier, as they traveled to the site, several markers indicated where the victim's car had been left.
The trip was intended to help the jurors become familiar with important sites in the case and no testimony was presented.
Context of the Trial
Previously, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused departed 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 Case
It is alleged that the defendant, 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 bikini, with her attire and belongings missing.
Those items were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located tied up to a tree hidden in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.
No murder weapon was found, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the state says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised findings that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve evidence that genetic material obtained from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.
The court has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its travel corresponded with those of a vehicle owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the state has claimed.
Defence Stance
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to provided testimony, but in his initial statement, Mr Singh's barrister Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."
He also foreshadowed evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men assault 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.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, the witness, whom authorities excluded as a person of interest, was one who gave evidence previously.
The trial heard he was an initial person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's disappearance, prior to her remains were discovered.
Images showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been altered in any way.
The case will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.