Jury in Prominent Down Under Murder Trial Tours Beach At Which Deceased Was Found
Jurors involved in a widely publicized Queensland homicide case have been taken to the remote beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a sandy resting place with minimal hope of surviving, the jury has heard.
Her body were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Court Visit to Beach
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 nod to the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a T-shirt, athletic wear and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected casual shirts, shorts and baseball caps.
Scene Particulars
The jurors were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the vehicle had been left.
The visit was designed to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the case and no official evidence was given.
Background of the Trial
Last week, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and relatives.
He was not heard from until he was apprehended years after, the state said.
State Case
It is claimed that the defendant, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and belongings missing.
Those objects were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, prosecutors contend.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found tied up to a post concealed in bushland about 100 feet from the burial site.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been found.
But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include testimony that genetic material recovered from a object at the scene was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.
The jury has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the beach after the killing – and that its travel corresponded with those of a vehicle belonging to the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his guilt, the state has argued.
Defense Position
"While authorities were finding Toyah's body, he was organizing... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also hinted at evidence to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants 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 other people "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities excluded as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence previously.
The trial was informed he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's disappearance, even before her body were found.
Images depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the jury, with an expert saying he was certain the pictures were authentic and had not been altered in any way.
The case will resume to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on Tuesday.
