Jury in Prominent Australian Murder Trial Tours Beach At Which Victim Was Found
Members of the jury overseeing a widely publicized Australian murder trial have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was located.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a shallow resting place with little or no chance of survival, the jury has heard.
Her body were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a stretch of coastline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Jury Visit to Beach
The panel of 10 men and two women plus three alternates visited the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week local time.
In a nod to the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected polo shirts, shorts and baseball caps.
Scene Details
The jurors were guided around 1.2km north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.
Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several markers showed where the vehicle had been parked.
The visit was intended to help the panel become familiar with important sites in the case and no official evidence was given.
Context of the Trial
Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were found, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, family and parents.
He was out of contact until he was arrested years after, the prosecution said.
Prosecution Case
It is alleged that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.
The victim was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and belongings absent.
Those items were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.
Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found tied up to a tree hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.
The weapon was found, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.
But the prosecution says the crown's case – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will involve testimony that DNA obtained from a stick 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 already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has argued.
Defense Stance
"As the police were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he began arguments.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."
He also hinted at testimony to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."
The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.
Further Evidence
Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom police excluded as a possible suspect, was one who testified last week.
The trial was informed he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's vanishing, prior to her body were discovered.
Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the court, with an expert saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.
The case will resume to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on the next day.
