Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Australian Homicide Case Tours Shoreline Where Deceased Was Discovered

Jurors involved in a high-profile Australian murder trial have been taken to the isolated shore where the young woman was discovered.

The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a sandy grave with little or no hope of surviving, the court has heard.

Her body were found by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Visit to Crime Scene

The panel of 12 individuals plus several back-up jurors visited the beach along with the judge and barristers on the start of the week in Queensland.

In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected casual shirts, shorts and baseball caps.

Scene Details

The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile along the beach to see where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.

Upon arrival, as they arrived by bus, several markers showed where the vehicle had been left.

The trip was designed to help the jurors become familiar with important sites in the trial and no official evidence was presented.

Context of the Trial

Previously, the court heard that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused flew from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, three children and parents.

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

State Case

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

Those items were removed by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was found secured to a tree concealed in shrubland about 30 metres from the burial site.

The weapon was ever recovered, and no eyewitnesses have been found.

But the state says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will include testimony that DNA recovered from a stick at the location was extremely more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.

The court has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the incident – and that its movements corresponded with those of a vehicle belonging to the defendant.

Mr Singh's quick exit from Australia also suggested his involvement, the prosecution has claimed.

Defence Stance

"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said last week as he opened his case.

The defense is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "calm" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."

He also foreshadowed testimony to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

The defense attorney has also said he will testify about other people "both known and unknown" who should come under suspicion.

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom police excluded as a person of interest, was among those who gave evidence last week.

The court heard he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her body were found.

Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the jury, with an specialist saying he was certain 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 Tuesday.