DNA evidence stacks against murder accused in six-year-old case

Crushing DNA evidence has been laid bare in the trial of a man accused of murdering a 24-year-old woman at a Far North Queensland beach nearly seven years ago.

Crown prosecutor Nathan Crane told the jury that DNA analysis showed Rajwinder Singh was 3.7 billion times more likely than a random man to have contributed genetic material found on a stick partially buried with Toyah Cordingley's body. A separate DNA sample recovered from her fingernails put the odds at 2000 to 1 in Singh's direction.

The figures underscore the prosecution's case that Singh murdered Cordingley on October 21, 2018, when she drove to Wangetti Beach, north of Cairns, for a solo afternoon walk with her dog. She never returned.

The victim's father, Troy Cordingley, delivered harrowing testimony on Wednesday about discovering his daughter during a pre-dawn search the following morning. He described how he came to rest beneath trees on the beach and noticed a mound in the sand that seemed unnatural. After scooping away earth three times, he found a foot.

"I reeled back," Mr Cordingley told the jury, his voice breaking. "I was horrified. I yelled out 'help me, help me'. I was shocked, stunned."

Cordingley's body bore signs of a violent struggle—her throat slashed, her chest and hands stabbed. A stick lay partially buried alongside her remains, carrying the DNA that would eventually place Singh at the scene with overwhelming statistical certainty.

The prosecution's timeline and forensics paint a detailed picture. Cordingley's phone left the beach at 5pm that afternoon, likely after her death, according to Crane. The phone's location history traced to multiple points matching CCTV footage of a blue Alfa Romeo sedan heading toward Lake Placid Holiday Apartments. Singh owned a blue Alfa Romeo with the same distinctive features—colour, wheels and grille—captured on camera.

Perhaps most damning has been Singh's behaviour since the discovery. He left Australia for New Delhi a day after Cordingley's body was found and remained in his native India until tracked down in November 2022, more than four years later. He abandoned his wife and children, lost his home to mortgage default, and never returned to his job as a hospital nurse.

Defence barrister Angus Edwards offered a counter-narrative in his opening address, suggesting that anyone present at the beach that day could theoretically have committed the crime. He urged the jury to scrutinise whether the phone, DNA and vehicle evidence held the weight the prosecution assigned to it, rather than accepting it as conclusive proof.

The trial continues to hear evidence. Singh pleaded not guilty to the murder charge on Tuesday.