An Indian origin man, Rajwinder Singh, was on Monday awarded life imprisonment by an Australian court for killing a woman in 2018. 24-year-old Toyah Cordingley was brutally killed by Singh while she was out for her morning walk with her dog. The convict allegedly stabbed her at least 26 times before cutting her throat.
However, Singh’s motive behind the murder was never established and both the accused and victim were described as strangers to each other during the trial.
Singh left for India the day after Cordingley’s body was found and remained on the run for four years until his arrest in 2022. He was subsequently extradited from India to Australia in 2023.
Before his conviction, the case went through an extensive process in the Cairns Supreme Court, where the 41-year-old pleaded not guilty. The first trial concluded with a hung jury, and after more than eight months, a second trial commenced, ultimately resulting in Singh’s conviction.
Victim’s family hails verdict
Cheers were heard from the court’s public gallery when the verdict on Rajwinder Singh was delivered. Victim Cordingley’s family members and friends were in tears, The Courier Mail reported. Her father screamed, "Rot in hell," while trying to control his emotions.
Singh arrested in India
After committing the crime, Rajwinder Singh fled to India leaving behind his wife, three children and parents. After remaining untraceable for over four years, he was arrested from a gurdwara in New Delhi in November 2022.
Queensland police had announced a $1 million reward for information on his whereabouts.
Cordingley disappeared on a Sunday afternoon in October 2018 while walking her dog, Indie, along Wangetti Beach near Cairns. The following day, her father found her body partially buried in the sand dunes.
