🔗 Share this article

Members of the jury involved in a widely publicized Queensland murder trial have traveled to the remote shore where the young woman was located.

Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly attacked with a sharp object and placed in a sandy grave with little or no chance of survival, the court has heard.

Her body were discovered 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, denies murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.

Court Inspection to Beach

The jury of 10 men and two women plus three back-up jurors attended the location along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning local time.

In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the lead prosecution 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 remains were discovered.

Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four markers showed where the vehicle had been parked.

The visit was intended to help the panel become acquainted with important sites in the trial and no testimony was given.

Background of the Case

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and parents.

He was not heard from until he was arrested years after, the state said.

State Case

It is alleged that the defendant, who was working as a nurse in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

The victim was found wearing a swimwear, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.

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 stroll, was found tied up to a post hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the grave.

No murder weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been identified.

But the prosecution says the evidence – though indirect – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."

This will involve testimony that DNA recovered from a stick at the location was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.

The jury has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its travel corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the accused.

Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also pointed to his involvement, the prosecution has argued.

Defense Position

"While authorities were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged 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 opening address, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."

He also hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent 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 testify about individuals "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.

Additional Testimony

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, the witness, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was one who testified previously.

The trial heard he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's vanishing, even before her remains were discovered.

Images showing the witness on a walk with a companion on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the jury, with an specialist saying he was certain the pictures were authentic and had not been doctored in any manner.

The case will return to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.