Jury in High-Profile Down Under Homicide Trial Tours Beach Where Victim Was Found
Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a shallow grave with minimal chance of survival, the court has heard.
Her body were found by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The jury of 10 men and two women plus three alternates attended the beach along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.
In a nod to the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The jurors were led around 1.2km along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several red and white cones showed where the victim's car had been left.
The visit was designed to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the case and no testimony was presented.
Context of the Trial
Last week, the court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and relatives.
He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the prosecution said.
State Argument
It is alleged that the defendant, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those objects were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found tied up to a tree hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.
The weapon was found, and no eyewitnesses have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve evidence that genetic material obtained from a object at the location was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.
The jury has previously been told evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the beach after the killing – and that its movements corresponded with those of a vehicle owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the state has argued.
Defence Stance
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire portrayed his client as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will testify about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence previously.
The trial was informed he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's vanishing, prior to her body were discovered.
Photographs showing the witness on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the pictures were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.
The case will return to the standard environment of the courtroom on Tuesday.
