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Jurors involved in a high-profile Australian murder trial have been taken to the remote beach where the young woman was discovered.

Toyah Cordingley was repeatedly attacked with a sharp object and placed in a shallow resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the court has been told.

The remains were found by her father the following day on Wangetti Beach – a section of coastline 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 Beach

The jury of 12 individuals plus three back-up jurors visited the beach along with the presiding officer and barristers on Monday morning in Queensland.

In a acknowledgment of the hot climate and sweltering heat, the judge wore a T-shirt, athletic wear and sneakers rather than traditional court attire.

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

Scene Details

The court members were led around three-quarters of a mile north up the sand to observe where Ms Cordingley's body were discovered.

Upon arrival, as they traveled to the site, several red and white cones showed where the vehicle had been left.

The visit was designed to help the panel become acquainted with important sites in the trial and no testimony was given.

Background of the Trial

Previously, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's body were found, the accused departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, three children and parents.

He was out of contact until he was arrested four years later, the prosecution said.

Prosecution Argument

It is alleged that the defendant, who was employed in healthcare in the community of Innisfail, near Cairns, had a confrontation with Ms Cordingley.

The victim was found wearing a bikini, with all her other clothes and most of her possessions missing.

Those objects were taken by the killer to conceal evidence, prosecutors contend.

Her dog, Indie, which Ms Cordingley had taken to the beach for a walk, was found secured to a post concealed in bushland about 30 metres from the burial site.

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

But the state says the crown's case – though indirect – was comprised findings that indicated Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will involve testimony that genetic material recovered from a object at the scene was extremely more probable to have originated from Mr Singh than a unrelated individual of the population.

The jury has already heard evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the scene after the killing – and that its travel corresponded with those of a vehicle belonging to the accused.

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

Defense Position

"As the police were discovering Toyah's body, he was organizing... a rushed single journey back to India," the prosecutor said last week as he opened his case.

The defence is has not provided testimony, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer described his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the unfortunate moment."

He also hinted at evidence to come later in the trial that, after his apprehension, Mr Singh informed an undercover officer he had witnessed assailants assault Ms Cordingley and then had run away in terror – something he said was his "biggest mistake."

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

Further Evidence

Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom authorities quickly ruled out as a person of interest, was one who gave evidence last week.

The court was informed he was an initial police suspect – and that he had faced questions from Ms Cordingley's father about whether he was involved in his girlfriend's vanishing, prior to her remains were discovered.

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

The case will resume to the more conventional setting of the courthouse on Tuesday.