Jury in Prominent Australian Murder Trial Tours Beach At Which Victim Was Found
Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Australian homicide case have been taken to the remote beach where the victim was located.
Toyah Cordingley was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a sandy grave with little or no chance of survival, the court has heard.
The remains were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to killing Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Court Visit to Beach
The panel of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors attended the beach along with the judge and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.
In a nod to the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, Justice Lincoln Crowley opted for a casual top, sport shorts and trainers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected casual 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 remains were discovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the victim's car had been parked.
The trip was designed to help the jurors become acquainted with important sites in the trial and no official evidence was presented.
Context of the Trial
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, three children and parents.
He was not heard from until he was apprehended years after, the prosecution said.
State Case
It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was found wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were taken by the killer to conceal evidence, prosecutors contend.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located secured to a tree hidden in bushland about 30 metres from the grave.
The weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been found.
But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised findings that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will include evidence that DNA obtained from a object at the location was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.
The court has already heard evidence indicating 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 pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has claimed.
Defense Position
"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a rushed one way trip back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he opened his case.
The defense is yet to provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his defendant as a "calm" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed testimony to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – 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 suspicion.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom authorities excluded as a possible suspect, was among those who gave evidence last week.
The court heard he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his partner's vanishing, even before her remains were discovered.
Images depicting the witness 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 pictures were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.
The case will return to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on Tuesday.