Jury in High-Profile Down Under Homicide Trial Tours Shoreline Where Victim Was Found

Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Australian 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 placed in a sandy resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has been told.

The remains were discovered by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Visit to Beach

The jury of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors visited the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week in Queensland.

In a nod to 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 selected casual shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.

Scene Details

The jurors were led around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.

Earlier, as they traveled to the site, several markers indicated where the victim's car had been parked.

The visit was designed to help the panel become familiar with key locations in the case and no official evidence was presented.

Context of the Trial

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were found, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, family and parents.

He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the state said.

State Case

It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.

The pharmacy worker was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and belongings missing.

Those objects were taken by the killer to avoid detection, prosecutors allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was found secured to a tree hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the burial site.

The weapon was found, and no one have been found.

But the prosecution says the crown's case – though indirect – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve testimony that DNA obtained from a object at the scene was extremely 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 travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the accused.

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

Defense Position

"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he opened his case.

The defence is yet to present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his client as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."

He also foreshadowed testimony to come later in the trial 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."

The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was one who testified previously.

The court heard he was an initial person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's disappearance, even before her remains were discovered.

Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was certain the pictures were authentic and had not been doctored in any way.

The trial will return to the standard environment of the courtroom on Tuesday.