Jury in Prominent Down Under Homicide Trial Visits Beach Where Victim Was Discovered
Members of the jury overseeing a high-profile Australian homicide case have traveled to the remote beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a sharp object and placed in a sandy grave with minimal hope of surviving, the court has heard.
The remains were found by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies killing Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Visit to Beach
The jury of 10 men and two women plus three alternates visited the beach along with the judge and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a casual top, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.
Location Details
The court members were guided 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 victim's car had been parked.
The visit was designed to help the panel become familiar with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was presented.
Background of the Case
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and parents.
He was out of contact until he was arrested years after, the state said.
State Argument
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 victim was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were taken by the killer to avoid detection, the prosecution contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was located tied up to a tree hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the grave.
The weapon was found, and no one have been found.
But the state says the evidence – though circumstantial – was made up of findings that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will involve testimony that genetic material recovered from a stick at the location was extremely more probable 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 incident – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also pointed to his involvement, the prosecution has argued.
Defence Position
"As the police were finding Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he opened his case.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister Greg McGuire portrayed his defendant as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."
He also foreshadowed evidence to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."
The defense attorney has also said he will testify about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Additional Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who testified last week.
The court heard 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 partner's vanishing, even before her remains were found.
Images showing the witness on a walk with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the jury, with an specialist saying he was confident the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.
The case will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.
