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Jurors overseeing a high-profile Australian murder trial have been taken to the remote shore where the victim was discovered.

The 24-year-old victim was repeatedly attacked with a bladed weapon and placed in a shallow resting place with little or no hope of surviving, the jury has heard.

Her body were discovered by a family member the following 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 killing Ms Cordingley on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 in northern Australia.

Court Inspection to Beach

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

In a acknowledgment of the tropical conditions and sweltering heat, Justice Lincoln Crowley wore a T-shirt, sport shorts and trainers rather than a wig and robes.

Both the prosecuting and defense attorneys chose casual shirts, bottoms and headwear.

Scene Details

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

Earlier, as they arrived by bus, several 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 trial and no official evidence was given.

Context of the Trial

Last week, the Cairns Supreme Court was informed that the day after Ms Cordingley's remains were discovered, Mr Singh departed from Australia to India – abandoning his wife, family and parents.

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

State Case

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

The victim was discovered wearing a swimwear, with her attire and most of her possessions absent.

Those items were taken by the assailant to avoid detection, prosecutors contend.

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

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

But the prosecution says the crown's case – though circumstantial – was made up of proof that pointed to Mr Singh "and eliminated others."

This will include evidence that DNA obtained from a stick at the scene was extremely more likely to have come from Mr Singh than a random member of the public.

The court has previously been told evidence suggesting that Ms Cordingley's mobile device departed the beach after the incident – and that its travel matched those of a vehicle owned by the accused.

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

Defence Stance

"While authorities were finding Toyah's remains, he was arranging... a hurriedly arranged single journey back to India," Mr Crane said previously as he opened his case.

The defense is has not present any evidence, but in his opening address, Mr Singh's barrister the lawyer portrayed his client as a "placid" and "caring" man, who was in the "wrong place at the wrong time."

He also foreshadowed evidence to come subsequently that, after his arrest, Mr Singh informed an plainclothes agent he had seen 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 suspicion.

Further Testimony

Ms Cordingley's partner, Marco Heidenreich, whom police excluded as a person of interest, was among those who testified last week.

The trial heard he was an initial police suspect – and that he had been interrogated from Ms Cordingley's parent about whether he was involved in his partner's disappearance, even before her body were discovered.

Photographs depicting Mr Heidenreich on a walk with a companion on the day Ms Cordingley went missing have been shown to the jury, with an specialist saying he was certain the pictures were genuine and had not been doctored in any way.

The trial will return to the more conventional setting of the courtroom on Tuesday.