Panel of Jurors in Prominent Australian Homicide Trial Tours Shoreline At Which Victim Was Discovered

Wangetti Beach scene
The remains of Toyah Cordingley was discovered on a remote beach in Far North Queensland in 2018.

Jurors involved in a high-profile Australian murder trial have traveled to the remote beach where the victim was discovered.

The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a sharp object and placed in a sandy grave with little or no chance of survival, the jury has been told.

Her body were found by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.

The accused, 41, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in Far North Queensland.

Jury Inspection to Beach

The jury of 12 individuals plus several alternates attended the beach along with the presiding officer and barristers on the start of the week in Queensland.

In a nod to the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, the judge wore a T-shirt, athletic wear and trainers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys selected polo shirts, shorts 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.

Earlier, as they traveled to the site, several markers indicated where the vehicle had been parked.

The trip was intended to help the jurors become familiar with key locations in the trial and no testimony was presented.

Context of the Trial

Last week, the court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and relatives.

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

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

State Argument

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

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

Those objects were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a stroll, was located tied up to a post concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.

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

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

This will involve evidence that DNA obtained from a object at the location was 3.8 billion times more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.

The court has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the beach after the killing – and that its travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the accused.

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

Defence Stance

"As the police were finding Toyah's body, 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 provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney Greg McGuire described his defendant as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."

He also hinted at evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

The defense attorney has also said he will testify about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under suspicion.

Additional Testimony

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, the witness, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was among those who gave evidence previously.

The trial was informed he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his partner's vanishing, prior to her remains were found.

Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been presented to the court, with an specialist saying he was certain the photos were authentic and had not been doctored in any manner.

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

Robert Byrd
Robert Byrd

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