The neighbours of an Indian nurse who is reportedly a person of interest in the murder investigation of a 24-year-old woman refuse to believe he is capable of killing.
Toyah Cordingley’s body was found by her distraught father in the sand dunes of Wagnetti Beach in far-north Queensland nearly two months ago.
Rajwinder Singh reportedly left behind his wife and three children when he flew to India the day her body was found, his father Amar Singh following him to their homeland to search for his son.
But the neighbours of Mr Singh have joined his family in saying the father-of-three is not a murderer, describing the hospital worker as a quiet family man.
Rajwinder Singh, who reportedly left behind his wife and three young children, is said to be a person of interest in Toyah Cordingley’s death
‘I still can’t believe it, until he is actually charged, I cannot believe it because to me he was just a normal bloke,’ neighbour Bill Liddell told Nine News.
Kathleen Liddell said the whole family were sociable.
‘They’re always out the front and waving to us and asking how we are, they’re really friendly,’ she said.
‘It’s awful and I feel sorry for the family.’
Mr Singh’s brother-in-law Harpreet Singh is adamant his relative is incapable of murder.
Harpreet said ‘Raj is too quiet (and) too afraid’ to commit murder, but admitted he struggled to deal with dying elderly patients under his care in the hospital.
‘He would get mentally upset and want to get away,’ Harpreet said of Rajwinder’s trips to beaches north of Cairns.
Mr Singh said his brother-in-law would go days at a time without making contact with his family, and had stopped speaking altogether as he became more and more isolated.
Other witnesses in the neighbourhood said they saw a man they believed to be Mr Singh driving erratically on the day Ms Cordingley was found.
New details have emerged in the investigation of the Queensland beach murder of Toyah Cordingley (pictured) The 24-year-old was found dead in the dunes of an isolated beach
Police are said to be investigating mobile phone records and have information about a car at the beach at the time of the murder.
Mr Singh’s Innisfail home was raided four weeks ago, with police reportedly confiscating a number of personal items.
He had been working as a nurse at Innisfail hospital for seven years and had a wife and three young children, including a baby, when he boarded a flight for his hometown of Amritsar in Punjab, India.
His father soon after followed him and is now searching for him, reporting back to Harpreet that he believed his son was in a ‘Sikh temple somewhere’.
The tickets were purchased on the day of Miss Cordingley’s death and he flew out less than 24 hours later, The Courier Mail reported.
Mr Singh was initially listed as a missing person, but police now have reason to believe he is in a remote village near the border of Pakistan and India.
A person of interest in the young woman’s (pictured) murder has been reportedly said to have left the country on the day her body was discovered
Miss Cordingley (pictured) was found on Wangetti Beach by father Troy the morning after she died
In the days following the discovery of Miss Cordingley’s body on October 22, colleagues noticed Mr Singh disappeared from work without an explanation.
‘We can confirm the person is no longer an employee of Queensland Health,’ a statement provided to The Courier Mail read.
‘This matter is under police investigation and therefore we will not be making any comment.’
Staff working in the same hospital as Mr Singh have reportedly provided statements to police about his behaviour, professional record, personal details and family history.
Queensland Police have also maintained silence for the ongoing investigation, a spokesperson telling Daily Mail Australia: ‘The Queensland Police Service will not be providing anything further other than the investigation is continuing’.
‘Speculation surrounding elements of the investigation are not helpful and have the potential to jeopardise it.’
Police are hoping to link the Indian man’s DNA to the beach where she was killed on Wangetti Beach (pictured)
The community have rallied around Miss Cordingley’s family, making more than 100 reports to Crime Stoppers while also distributing these bumper stickers to raise awareness
Miss Cordingley, who was described as a ‘beautiful soul’ by those close to her, was murdered on October 21 in broad daylight.
The pharmacy assistant was walking her dog along the secluded beach when she was attacked. Her body was found the next morning by her father Troy almost one kilometre from where her car was parked.
Her dog was found alive and tightly bound to a nearby tree.
The far-north Queensland community rallied around her family, making more than 100 separate reports to Crime Stoppers, who continue to appeal for information.