🔗 Share this article

Members of the jury overseeing a high-profile Queensland homicide case have been taken to the isolated beach where the young woman was discovered.

Toyah Cordingley was multiple times attacked with a sharp object and placed in a shallow resting place with minimal hope of surviving, the court 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.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies killing Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.

Court Visit to Crime Scene

The panel of 10 men and two women plus several alternates attended the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on the start of the week in Queensland.

In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and sweltering heat, the judge opted for a casual top, athletic wear and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.

Both the lead prosecution and defence barristers chose casual shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.

Location Details

The court members were guided around 1.2km north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered.

Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, several red and white cones showed where the vehicle had been parked.

The visit was intended to help the panel become familiar with key locations in the trial and no testimony was given.

Context of the Case

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, the accused departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and parents.

He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the prosecution said.

State Argument

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

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

Those items were taken by the killer to avoid detection, prosecutors allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found tied up to a post hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the burial site.

No murder weapon was found, and no one have been found.

But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was made up of findings that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."

This will include testimony that genetic material obtained from a object at the scene was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.

The jury has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the scene after the incident – and that its travel corresponded with those of a vehicle owned by the accused.

Mr Singh's sudden departure from Australia also pointed to his guilt, the prosecution has claimed.

Defense Position

"As the police were discovering Toyah's body, he was arranging... a rushed one way trip back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he opened his case.

The defense is yet to provided testimony, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."

He also hinted at evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had seen assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "gravest error."

The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about other people "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom authorities excluded as a possible suspect, was one who gave evidence last week.

The court was informed 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 found.

Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the court, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were authentic and had not been altered in any way.

The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on the next day.