Jury in High-Profile Down Under Murder Trial Visits Beach At Which Victim Was Found

Wangetti Beach scene
The body of Toyah Cordingley were found on a secluded coastline in northern Queensland back in 2018.

Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Queensland murder trial have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was discovered.

Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly stabbed with a bladed weapon and buried in a shallow grave with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has heard.

The remains were discovered by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline nestled between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, has pleaded not guilty to killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Visit to Crime Scene

The panel of 10 men and two women plus several alternates visited the location along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.

In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than traditional court attire.

Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose casual shirts, bottoms and headwear.

Location Details

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

Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four red and white cones indicated where the vehicle had been left.

The visit was intended to help the panel become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was given.

Context of the Trial

Last week, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were found, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his spouse, family and relatives.

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

Court officials at the beach
The judge with barristers and other court officials at Wangetti Beach.

Prosecution Argument

It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

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

Those objects were removed by the killer to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was found tied up to a tree hidden in bushland about 30 metres from the grave.

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

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

This will include testimony that genetic material recovered from a stick at the location was 3.8 billion times more likely to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.

The court has already heard testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone left the beach after the killing – and that its movements matched 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 finding Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he opened his case.

The defence is has not present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer described his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."

He also foreshadowed testimony to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had witnessed assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

Mr McGuire has also said he will give evidence about other people "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities excluded as a person of interest, was among those who testified last week.

The trial was informed he was an immediate police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her remains were discovered.

Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been doctored in any manner.

The trial will resume to the standard environment of the courthouse on Tuesday.

Stacy Clark
Stacy Clark

Elara is a seasoned lifestyle writer and wellness coach with a passion for exploring global cultures and sustainable living.