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Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Australian homicide case have traveled to the isolated shore where the victim was discovered.

Toyah Cordingley was multiple times attacked with a bladed weapon and buried in a shallow grave with minimal hope of surviving, the jury has been told.

The remains were found by her father the next day on Wangetti Beach – a section of shoreline nestled between the tourist centres of Cairns and Port Douglas.

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

Court Visit to Crime Scene

The jury of 10 men and two women plus three back-up jurors attended the location along with the judge and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.

In a nod to the tropical conditions and temperatures above 30C, the judge opted for a T-shirt, sport shorts and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.

Both the prosecuting and defence barristers selected polo shirts, shorts and baseball caps.

Location Particulars

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

Earlier, as they traveled to the site, four red and white cones showed where the vehicle had been left.

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

Context of the Trial

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the following day Ms Cordingley's remains were found, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – leaving behind his wife, three children and relatives.

He was out of contact until he was apprehended years after, the state said.

Prosecution Argument

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

The victim was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and belongings missing.

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

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was located secured to a post hidden in shrubland about 100 feet from the burial site.

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

But the prosecution says the evidence – though circumstantial – was comprised proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve testimony that DNA obtained from a object at the location was extremely more probable to have come from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.

The jury has previously been told testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the beach after the killing – and that its travel matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo belonging to the defendant.

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

Defence Position

"While authorities were discovering Toyah's body, he was organizing... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he began arguments.

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 hinted at testimony to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed two masked men assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in fear – something he said was his "gravest error."

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

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's boyfriend at the time, Marco Heidenreich, whom police quickly ruled out as a possible suspect, was among those who testified previously.

The trial was informed he was an immediate person of interest – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's disappearance, prior to her remains were found.

Photographs showing Mr Heidenreich on a hike with a friend on the date Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the court, with an specialist saying he was confident the photos were genuine and had not been doctored in any way.

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