Court witnesses shed further light on what may have happened to Toyah Cordingley

Murder Trial

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The Toyah Cordingley murder trial has been running in Cairns this week.

More details have emerged about how events unfolded at Wangetti Beach and Port Douglas on the tragic day of former pet shelter volunteer Toyah Cordingley’s death during the first week of the Queensland Supreme Court trial of the man charged with her murder, Rajwinder Singh.

Ms Cordingley sent her final text message to partner Marco Heidenreich’s phone at 3.17pm on October 21, 2018, saying she was going to pick up a friend named Tyson from the airport later that day.

Mr Heidenreich told the court he did not see that text until he was at Wangetti Beach looking for her later on, and that message was the first he had ever heard of Mr Franklin.

CCTV footage was shown in court by Detective Sergeant Garry Hall of the man, Ms Cordingley’s podiatrist Tyson Franklin, catching an Uber from Cairns Airport later in the day.

During his cross examination Mr Franklin said his relationship with Ms Cordingley was more involved than what he had initially told police, saying they had started a “flirtatious” friendship earlier that month and had shared a night together a week before her death.

He said they did not have a sexual relationship, but “we lay together and I ran my hands over her body, we cuddled.”

He said he thought she was unhappy in her relationship and wanted to live alone.

CCTV footage was shown in court of Mr Heidenreich stopping at a petrol station while driving north to Port Douglas to go hiking with his friend Joel Cuman, and security camera footage of him at the Courthouse Hotel bottle shop buying a six pack of beer at about 3pm.

Photos from Mr Cuman’s phone showed them hiking near Mowbray later that day. 

Mr Heidenreich told the court he drove to Port Douglas that day, went on a hike with Mr Cuman, then spent hours searching for his missing dog along the Spring Creek waterfall track.

Mr Cuman also told the court Mr Heidenreich had picked him up in the afternoon and they hiked in the Spring Creek area, with the dog going missing near the bottom of the trail.

They said they searched the area until dark, then visited two different friends’ houses in search of a torch to borrow.

Friend Toby Petrak said the pair picked up his torch at about 7pm-7.30pm.

He said Mr Heidenreich then returned without the dog “around 9pm” and they drank a beer, where his friend was upset because he had not heard from Ms Cordingley all afternoon. 

Mr Petrak said Mr Heidenreich called again later that night saying he had found Ms Cordingley’s unlocked car at Wangetti Beach.

Forensic scientist Sergeant Kylie Webster also told the court that a shirt of Mr Heidenreich’s had tested positive for small stains of blood.

There was a small fingernail-sized mark on the front neck part of the shirt, and three spots on the inside back of the shirt, she said. 

Ms Cordingley is believed to have died on the beach sometime between 3.30pm and 6.30pm.

The murder trial of former Innisfail nurse Singh, who has pleaded not guilty to killing the former Paws and Claws volunteer, is expected to continue for the next month, with more than 400 potential witnesses listed for possible appearances.

 

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