Jury in Prominent Down Under Murder Case Visits Shoreline At Which Deceased Was Discovered
Jurors involved in a widely publicized Australian murder trial have been taken to the remote beach where the victim was located.
The 24-year-old victim was multiple times stabbed with a sharp object and placed in a sandy resting place with minimal chance of survival, the jury has been told.
The remains were found by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of shoreline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Inspection to Beach
The panel of 10 men and two women plus several back-up jurors attended the beach along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning local time.
In a nod to the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a casual top, sport shorts and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.
Both the lead prosecution and defence barristers chose casual shirts, bottoms and headwear.
Scene Details
The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to observe where Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered.
Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, several red and white cones indicated where the victim's car had been parked.
The trip was intended to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the case and no testimony was presented.
Context of the Trial
Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the following day 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 prosecution said.
Prosecution Argument
It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions missing.
Those objects were taken by the assailant to conceal evidence, prosecutors allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was located tied up to a tree hidden in bushland about 30 metres from the grave.
The weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the prosecution says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was made up of proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."
This will involve testimony that genetic material obtained from a stick at the scene was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The jury has previously been told testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone left the scene after the killing – and that its travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the state has argued.
Defense Stance
"While authorities were finding Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney Greg McGuire portrayed his defendant as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."
He also foreshadowed evidence to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had seen two masked men attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."
Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, the witness, whom police excluded as a person of interest, was among those who testified previously.
The trial heard he was an initial police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's disappearance, prior to her remains were found.
Photographs depicting the witness on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the court, with an specialist saying he was certain 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.
