Case 348: Toyah Cordingley

Summary of Case 348: Toyah Cordingley

by Casefile Presents

1h 27m•August 15, 2026
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Overview of Case 348: Toyah Cordingley

This episode of Casefile Presents covers the 2018 murder of Toyah Cordingley at Wangetti Beach in Far North Queensland, Australia, and the years-long investigation that eventually led to the arrest, extradition, and conviction of Rajwinder Singh. The case is notable for its extensive forensic work, phone and CCTV analysis, an international manhunt, and a highly emotional trial process that ended with a guilty verdict after an initial hung jury.

What Happened to Toyah Cordingley

The day of the disappearance

  • On Sunday, October 21, 2018, Toyah spent the morning at home in Cairns with her boyfriend Marco Heidenreich.
  • She later went to Rusty’s Markets and then drove north to Wangetti Beach with her dog, Indy.
  • Her boyfriend became concerned when he couldn’t reach her and later found her car still parked at the beach.

Discovery of the crime scene

  • The next morning, Toyah’s family and Marco searched the beach.
  • Her mother, Vanessa, found Indy tied to a tree in a way Toyah would not have done.
  • Shortly after, Toyah’s father Troy discovered a shallow grave in the sand.
  • Toyah had been stabbed 26 times and her throat had been slashed four times.
  • Police determined she was killed in broad daylight, likely between 3:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Investigation and Key Evidence

Initial focus on those close to Toyah

  • Investigators first examined:
    • Marco Heidenreich, her boyfriend
    • Tyson Franklin, a man she had recently met and exchanged intimate messages with
  • Marco was cleared by alibi evidence from a hike with a friend, backed by timestamped photos.
  • Tyson was ruled out in relation to the murder, though police later uncovered that he had accessed child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and he was subsequently convicted on those charges.

Digital and forensic evidence

  • Toyah’s phone was missing, but records showed it moved south along the coast after the murder.
  • Cell tower pings and CCTV helped map the killer’s route away from the beach.
  • That trail led investigators to a blue Alfa Romeo 156, later linked to Rajwinder Singh.
  • DNA from a stick at the burial site strongly matched Singh.
  • Additional forensic testing later strengthened the case, including Y-chromosome DNA results from under Toyah’s fingernails.

Why police suspected Rajwinder Singh

  • CCTV showed Singh driving in the Cairns area and then heading toward Wangetti Beach around the likely time of the murder.
  • His route back south matched the movement of Toyah’s phone after it disappeared.
  • Singh’s own phone had a long gap in activity that day.
  • He abruptly fled Australia soon afterward, first to Sydney and then to India.

Rajwinder Singh’s Flight and Arrest

Disappearance

  • Singh told friends and family conflicting stories about where he was going.
  • He left Australia quickly, gave a vague excuse involving his grandfather, and never returned to his family or job.
  • Police could not arrest him immediately because he had left the country.

International search

  • Queensland Police worked with Indian authorities and Interpol for years.
  • A major public campaign in Queensland — including the widely seen “TOYA” bumper stickers — kept attention on the case.
  • In November 2022, a $1 million reward was announced, the largest in Queensland’s history.
  • A tip eventually led police to a Sikh gurdwara in Delhi, where Singh was arrested in November 2022.

Trial, Verdict, and Sentence

First trial

  • Singh was extradited back to Australia in 2023 and charged with murder.
  • His first trial in 2025 ended in a hung jury after the jurors could not reach unanimity.

Retrial and conviction

  • A retrial began later in 2025.
  • The prosecution leaned heavily on:
    • DNA evidence
    • phone tower data
    • CCTV footage
    • Singh’s suspicious departure from the country
  • The defense argued he may have witnessed the killing and fled in fear, but the jury rejected that theory.
  • Singh was found guilty of murder.

Sentencing

  • Justice Lincoln Crowley sentenced Singh to life imprisonment with a 25-year non-parole period.
  • The judge described the killing as violent and incomprehensible, and noted Singh had shown no remorse.
  • An appeal is scheduled for October 2026.

Other Notable Points

What the episode emphasizes

  • The brutality of the attack and the shock it caused in a close-knit community.
  • The power of modern digital forensics in solving an otherwise difficult case.
  • The emotional toll on Toyah’s family, especially her parents, who were central to the search and later the justice campaign.
  • The broader legacy of Toyah’s case in Far North Queensland, where her name became a symbol of community grief and resolve.

Legacy and memorials

  • Toyah is remembered as:
    • kind and generous
    • an animal lover
    • an environmental advocate
    • a beloved daughter, sister, partner, and friend
  • Memorials and tributes were created in her honor, including:
    • a permanent memorial at Wangetti Beach
    • Toya Walk at a boarding kennel property
    • tributes at the animal shelter where she volunteered

Bottom Line

This episode tells the full arc of a devastating Australian murder case: a young woman killed while walking her dog, an extensive investigation that used phone, CCTV, and DNA evidence to identify the suspect, an international manhunt, and finally a conviction years later. It is as much a crime story as it is a portrait of a community that refused to let Toyah Cordingley be forgotten.