Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Australian Murder Case Visits Shoreline At Which Deceased Was Found
Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was discovered.
The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and placed in a sandy resting place with minimal hope of surviving, the jury has been told.
The remains were discovered by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.
The accused, 41, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.
Court Inspection to Crime Scene
The panel of 10 men and two women plus three alternates visited the beach along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.
In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and trainers rather than traditional court attire.
Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose polo shirts, shorts and headwear.
Location Details
The jurors were led 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, several red and white cones indicated where the victim's car had been left.
The visit was designed to help the jurors become familiar with key locations in the case and no testimony was presented.
Context of the Case
Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, family and parents.
He was out of contact until he was apprehended four years later, the prosecution said.
State Argument
It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a altercation with Ms Cordingley.
The pharmacy worker was found wearing a bikini, with her attire and most of her possessions absent.
Those items were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, prosecutors allege.
Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located secured to a tree hidden in bushland about 100 feet from the grave.
The weapon was ever recovered, and no one have been identified.
But the state says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised findings that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."
This will involve testimony that DNA recovered from a stick at the scene was extremely more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the public.
The court has already heard testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone left the scene after the killing – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.
Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the prosecution has argued.
Defense Stance
"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he opened his case.
The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."
He also hinted at testimony to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "gravest error."
Mr McGuire has also said he will testify about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under investigation.
Additional Testimony
Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was one who gave evidence previously.
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 involved in his girlfriend's disappearance, even before her remains were discovered.
Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the pictures were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.
The case will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on the next day.
