Panel of Jurors in High-Profile Down Under Murder Case Visits Shoreline At Which Victim Was Found

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

Members of the jury involved in a high-profile Australian murder trial have traveled to the remote beach where the young woman was located.

Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly stabbed with a sharp object and buried in a shallow resting place with minimal chance of survival, the court has been told.

The remains were discovered by a family member the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline between the popular destinations of Cairns and Port Douglas.

Rajwinder Singh, 41, denies killing Ms Cordingley on a weekend in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Jury Visit to Crime Scene

The jury of 10 men and two women plus several back-up jurors visited the beach along with the judge and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.

In a nod to the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a casual top, athletic wear and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected casual shirts, bottoms and headwear.

Scene Particulars

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

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

The trip was designed to help the jurors become acquainted with key locations in the trial and no official evidence was presented.

Background of the Trial

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, the accused flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his spouse, family and relatives.

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

Court officials at the beach
Justice Lincoln Crowley with barristers and other court officials at Wangetti Beach.

State Argument

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

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

Those items were removed by the assailant to avoid detection, the prosecution allege.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a walk, was located tied up to a post hidden in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.

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

But the prosecution says the evidence – though circumstantial – was made up of proof that indicated Mr Singh "excluding other suspects."

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

The jury has previously been told evidence indicating that Ms Cordingley's phone departed the scene after the killing – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the accused.

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

Defense Stance

"While authorities were discovering Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a hurriedly arranged one way trip back to India," the prosecutor said previously as he began arguments.

The defense is yet to present any evidence, but in his initial statement, Mr Singh's barrister Greg McGuire portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."

He also foreshadowed evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh told an plainclothes agent he had seen two masked men attack 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 other people "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's partner, the witness, whom authorities excluded as a person of interest, was one 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 involved in his partner's vanishing, prior to her body were found.

Photographs depicting the witness on a hike with a friend on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been shown to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been altered in any way.

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

Alexandra Jimenez
Alexandra Jimenez

Lena is a lifestyle blogger passionate about sharing tips for balancing work and personal life, with a background in psychology.