After failing to reach a ruling, a jury in the test of a former nurse who is accused of murdering a lady on a distant American beach has been discharged.
Toyah Cordingley was stabbed at least 26 times while out walking her dog in October 2018.
Her father found the 24-year-old’s system, half-buried in dust sands on Wangetti shore, between the well-known tourist spots of Cairns and Port Douglas.
Rajwinder Singh, 40, who travelled to India the day after Ms Cordingley’s body was found, was charged with murder. He was arrested and then extradited to Australia in 2023.
However, after two and a half days of deliberations, jurors at Cairns Supreme Court claimed they were impassed and unable to reach a verdict on his grief. The jury was thanked by the prosecutor for their “diligence.”
Jury decisions in murder cases may be majority under Queensland law. Thus, Mr. Singh will have to go on test again.
Mr. Singh was living in Innisfail, a village about two hours north of the crime scene, despite being formerly from Buttar Kalan in the Indian state of Punjab.
There was no proof of a sexual abuse, according to the prosecution, and they did not have a goal for the dying of Ms. Cordingley, a volunteer at an animal shelter and employee at a health store.
According to the test at Cairns Supreme Court, a DNA sample taken from the victim’s proper fingernails revealed that the victim’s status was very likely to be his and that it was also discovered on a rod on the tomb.
Additionally, cellular phone tower data indicated that Ms. Cordingley’s mobile had moved on a similar pattern to Mr. Singh’s blue Alfa Romeo car the day the victim vanished.
The trial also suggested that Mr. Singh’s rush to leave Australia without saying goodbye to his loved ones or coworkers was a sign of his grief.
Mr. Singh had denied death and had told an undercover police officer that he had witnessed the killing before emigrating, leaving behind his wife and children because he was concerned for his own life.
His defense attorney claimed he was” a fool” but not a criminal and that police had conducted a “flawed” investigation without taking into account any other potential suspects.
They claimed that the defendant’s discarded photo stick and the DNA recovered at the picture did not match Mr. Singh’s profile.
The judge was informed by defense attorney Angus Edwards that” there is an unknown person’s Genome at that grave site.”