Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Down Under Homicide Trial Tours Beach Where Victim Was Discovered
Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the young woman was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow grave with minimal chance of survival, the jury has heard.
Her body were discovered by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the popular destinations 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 Crime Scene
The panel of 12 individuals plus three back-up jurors visited the location along with the presiding officer and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.
In a nod to the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected polo shirts, bottoms and headwear.
Scene Particulars
The jurors were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.
Earlier, as they traveled to the site, several red and white cones indicated where the vehicle had been parked.
The visit was intended to help the panel become acquainted with important sites in the case and no testimony was given.
Context of the Case
Previously, the court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and relatives.
He was out of contact until he was arrested four years later, the state said.
Prosecution Case
It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was discovered wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.
Those objects were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found tied up to a tree concealed in shrubland about 100 feet from the burial site.
The weapon was found, and no one have been identified.
But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will include evidence that genetic material recovered from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.
The court has previously been told testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the scene after the killing – and that its travel corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defense Stance
"As the police were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.
The defense is has not present any evidence, but in his initial statement, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer portrayed his client as a "calm" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place 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 fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom authorities excluded as a person of interest, was among those who gave evidence 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 partner's disappearance, even before her remains were discovered.
Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the court, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were authentic and had not been doctored in any manner.
The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on the next day.