Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Australian Murder Case Visits Beach At Which Deceased Was Discovered
Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Australian homicide case have traveled to the remote shore where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a sandy resting place with little or no chance of survival, the court has been told.
The remains were found by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of shoreline 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 Far North Queensland.
Jury Visit to Crime Scene
The panel of 12 individuals plus three alternates attended the beach along with the presiding officer and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys selected casual shirts, shorts and baseball caps.
Location Particulars
The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, four markers showed where the vehicle had been left.
The trip was intended to help the panel become familiar with important sites in the case and no official evidence was presented.
Background of the Case
Previously, the court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, family and relatives.
He was not heard from until he was arrested years after, the prosecution said.
State Argument
It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was working as a nurse in the town of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.
Those items were removed by the killer to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located tied up to a tree concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.
No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve testimony that genetic material obtained from a object at the location was 3.8 billion times more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.
The jury has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the defendant.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defence Stance
"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.
The defence is yet to provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "calm" 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 two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Further Testimony
Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was one who gave evidence previously.
The court was informed he was an initial person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his partner's disappearance, even before her body were found.
Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been altered in any manner.
The case will return to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on Tuesday.
