TV BOSSES say tonight’s investigation into the murder of Saints steward Paula Poolton reaches an “unexpectedly devastating” conclusion.

Viewers will witness the result of a two-part inquiry into the conviction of Hampshire postal worker Roger Kearney, who was jailed for life in 2010 for the brutal killing.

Paula was stabbed to death in 2008 and her body dumped in the boot of her car, which was found near Swanwick railway station.

The police investigation is being analysed by Conviction: Murder at the Station, a documentary made for BBC Two by the award-winning Raw TV.

Its presenter is Louise Shorter from Inside Justice, a charity that uses independent forensics experts, criminal lawyers and ex-detectives to investigate alleged miscarriages of justice.

The documentary coincides with a separate inquiry by the Criminal Cases Review Commission, which is examining Kearney’s conviction.

Richard Bond, head of UK Factual at Raw TV, said: “We never expected this investigation to evolve into a compelling real-life thriller with twists and turns that would take Louise and the viewer on such an incredible emotional rollercoaster towards an unexpectedly devastating conclusion.”

Kearney, 57, of Painswick Close, Sarisbury Green, was Paula’s secret lover.

During his trial the prosecution claimed he was tiring of the relationship and killed her after she put pressure on him to leave his partner.

But Kearney claims that on the night in question he had dinner at home before driving to his night shift at the Royal Mail depot in Eastleigh.

The first episode retraced Kearney’s steps on the night Paula was murdered.

Ms Shorter said he would have had only seven minutes to stab his victim to death and dump her body in the boot of her black Peugeot 206, which was parked near a taxi rank.

Paula, 40, of Course Park Crescent, Titchfield, was the victim of what was described in court as a vicious and very bloody murder.

But Ms Shorter said the prosecution failed to produce any forensic evidence linking Kearney to the crime. There was also surprisingly little blood in the car, even though the Saint steward had been knifed several times.

Conviction: Murder at the Station also highlighted flaws in poor quality CCTV images that formed part of the prosecution case.

However, the programme failed to impress Paula’s father, Phil Cross, 81, of Sarisbury Green, who sat through Kearney’s six-week trial at Winchester Crown Court.

As reported in the Daily Echo, Mr Cross remained convinced of Kearney’s guilt after watching the first part of the documentary last week.

The concluding part of Conviction: Murder at the Station will be broadcast on BBC Two at 9pm today.