Panel of Jurors in Prominent Down Under Homicide Trial Visits Shoreline At Which Victim Was Found
Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Australian murder trial have traveled to the isolated shore where the young woman was discovered.
Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a sandy resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the court has been told.
The remains were discovered by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Court Inspection to Crime Scene
The jury of 10 men and two women plus several alternates visited the location along with the presiding officer and barristers on the start of the week in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The court members were led around 1.2km along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, four red and white cones indicated where the vehicle had been left.
The visit was intended to help the jurors become familiar with important sites in the case and no testimony was given.
Background of the Case
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and parents.
He was not heard from until he was arrested years after, the prosecution said.
State Argument
It is claimed that the defendant, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and belongings absent.
Those items were removed by the killer to conceal evidence, the prosecution contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located tied up to a post concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the grave.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was made up of findings that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include testimony that genetic material obtained from a stick at the location was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The court has previously been told testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone left the beach after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the state has argued.
Defence Stance
"While authorities were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he began arguments.
The defense is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."
He also foreshadowed testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had witnessed two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "gravest error."
The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was one who testified previously.
The trial heard he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his partner's disappearance, prior to her body were found.
Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an expert saying he was confident the pictures were authentic and had not been doctored in any way.
The trial will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.
