Murderer of Toyah Cordingley challenges conviction over juror dismissal

Rajwinder Singh, 42, who received a life sentence for the 2018 murder of 24-year-old Toyah Cordingley on Wangetti Beach, has appealed his conviction in the Brisbane Supreme Court. His legal team, led by Saul Holt KC, argued that the trial should have been halted after a juror was dismissed following a note alleging bias, yet the judge did not investigate the claim or dismiss the entire jury. Holt also highlighted procedural issues, such as jurors separating during a gravesite inspection and inconsistencies in the prosecution’s case against Cordingley’s former boyfriend, Marco Heidenreich.

He described the 25-year non-parole term as “manifestly excessive.” Crown prosecutor Todd Fuller KC countered that the judge’s actions were lawful and that police ensured jurors were insulated from external influence. The appeal court postponed further deliberations, with Fuller set to resume his arguments the following day.