Jury in High-Profile Down Under Homicide Case Visits Shoreline Where Victim Was Discovered

Wangetti Beach scene
The remains of Toyah Cordingley were found on a remote beach in northern Queensland back in 2018.

Jurors overseeing a high-profile Queensland homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the young woman was located.

The 24-year-old victim was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow grave with minimal chance of survival, the court has been told.

Her body were discovered by a family member the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.

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

Court Inspection to Beach

The panel of 12 individuals plus three back-up jurors visited the beach along with the presiding officer and legal counsel on Monday morning local time.

In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a casual top, sport shorts and trainers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the lead prosecution and defense attorneys selected polo shirts, bottoms and headwear.

Scene Particulars

The court members were guided around 1.2km north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's body were uncovered.

Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, several markers showed where the vehicle had been left.

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

Background of the Case

Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were found, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, family and relatives.

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

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

Prosecution 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 swimwear, with all her other clothes and belongings missing.

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

Her pet, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had brought along for a stroll, was located tied up to a post hidden in shrubland about 30 metres from the grave.

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

But the state says the evidence – though indirect – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve evidence that genetic material obtained from a object at the scene was 3.8 billion times more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the population.

The jury has already heard testimony suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the scene after the incident – and that its movements corresponded with those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.

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

Defence Position

"As the police were discovering Toyah's remains, he was organizing... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he opened his case.

The defence is has not provided testimony, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "compassionate" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the unfortunate moment."

He also foreshadowed evidence to come later in the trial that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had witnessed assailants attack Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

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

Additional Testimony

Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, 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 girlfriend's vanishing, even before her remains were found.

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

The case will resume to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on the next day.

Cameron Brown
Cameron Brown

Elara is a seasoned journalist and cultural critic with a passion for uncovering stories that connect diverse global communities.