Canberra, Nov 12 () Australian authorities are appealing for the public’s help in an international hunt to find the man they believe killed Toyah Cordingley — Rajwinder Singh. The man lived in Innisfail but is originally from Buttar Kalan in India’s Punjab state. He left behind his job, wife and their three children when he fled Australia hours after Toyah’s body was discovered, BBC reported. It happened was four years ago. Media reports quote witnesses saying they saw Singh acting suspiciously with scratches and bite-marks on the day of Toyah’s murder. Australian and Indian officials have agreed on an extradition order, but have been so far unable to locate the 38-year-old. And so Queensland Police last week announced a record reward — A$1million or 53 million Indian rupees — for anyone with information that leads to his arrest. “We know that people know this person, they know where this person is and we’re asking those people to do the right thing,” Police Minister Mark Ryan told reporters on Thursday.
“This person is accused of a very heinous crime; a crime which has ripped a family apart.” The 24-year-old victim had gone to the beach to walk her dog on October 21, 2018, as she had done countless times before, but never came home. The next morning her father found her “messed up” body half buried in sand dunes. Her beloved dog was tied up nearby, unharmed. She was found on the beach 40 km north of Cairns. Police have said they believe the attack may have been sexually motivated. In the days following Toyah’s death, the community desperately tried to help catch her killer. Mountains of tips were called in to police, and hundreds of people combed Wangetti Beach for clues. Police started requesting DNA samples from locals, the ABC reported, and searched for evidence.
Police searched Singh’s house in Innisfail — about two hours from the crime scene — but were unable to question him. He had already left the country. Singh’s brother-in-law has previously told local newspaper The Courier Mail that the timing of his return to his hometown was a coincidence. “Raj is not capable of murder,” Harpreet Singh said in 2018. “He is too quiet, too afraid. He was under a lot of tension from his work.” But the Australian government sought an extradition order in March 2021, something they can only do if investigators have a case strong enough to prosecute. Last month Indian authorities approved the request, meaning police can arrest and return Singh to Australia — if they can find him.