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Jurors overseeing a widely publicized Australian murder trial have been taken to the isolated shore where the victim was located.

Toyah Cordingley was multiple times stabbed with a sharp object and placed in a shallow grave with little or no chance of survival, the jury has been told.

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

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

Court Visit to Crime Scene

The panel of 12 individuals plus three back-up jurors visited the location along with the judge and barristers on the start of the week local time.

In a nod to the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, the judge opted for a casual top, sport shorts and sneakers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defence barristers chose polo shirts, bottoms and baseball caps.

Scene Details

The court members were guided around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to see where Ms Cordingley's remains were uncovered.

Earlier, as they arrived by bus, four markers indicated where the vehicle had been left.

The visit was intended to help the jurors become familiar with important sites in the case and no official evidence was presented.

Background of the Trial

Last week, the court heard that the following day Ms Cordingley's body were discovered, Mr Singh flew from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and relatives.

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

State Case

It is claimed that Mr Singh, who was employed in healthcare in the town of Innisfail, south of Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

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

Those objects were removed by the assailant to conceal evidence, the prosecution contend.

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

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

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

This will include 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 court has previously been told testimony indicating that Ms Cordingley's mobile device left the scene after the incident – and that its movements matched those of a blue Alfa Romeo owned by the defendant.

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

Defense Stance

"As the police were finding Toyah's body, 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 present any evidence, but in his initial statement, the defense attorney the lawyer described his defendant as a "calm" and "caring" man, who was in the "incorrect location at the wrong time."

He also foreshadowed testimony to come subsequently that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh told an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had fled in terror – something he said was his "gravest error."

The defense attorney has also said he will give evidence about individuals "identified and unidentified" who should come under investigation.

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was one who testified previously.

The court was informed he was an initial person of interest – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was implicated in his girlfriend's vanishing, even before her body were found.

Images showing the witness on a hike with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley disappeared have been presented to the jury, with an expert saying he was confident the pictures were authentic and had not been altered in any manner.

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