A GERMAN TV reporter was sacked after appearing to be caught on camera smearing herself in mud to pretend she was helping with the clean-up in a flood-devastated town.
Susanna Ohlen, 39, was filming a TV report in Bad Munstereifel, Germany following catastrophic heavy flooding that claimed at least 188 lives in the country.
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RTL.de had published an article titled “cleaning up after the flood: RTL presenter lends a hand in Bad Munstereifel”.
But she was caught after an onlooker posted an incriminating video online.
After this, the channel said: “Our reporter’s approach clearly contradicts journalistic principles and our own standards.
“We, therefore, gave her a leave of absence on Monday after we heard about it.”
Footage appeared to show Ohlen dressed in a blue shirt, hat, and boots as she bent down to apparently pick up some mud.
It is thought she smeared it on her clothes while surrounded by flood-damaged houses and debris.
She then bends down a second time, this time seemingly smearing mud on her face.
The onlooker can be heard laughing in the background as Ohlen then turns to face her camera crew.
The journalist had worked at RTL since 2008 and presented Good Evening RTL, Good Morning Germany, and Point 12, among others.
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More than 180 people died in Germany in last week’s flooding and a further 31 deaths were reported in Belgium, taking the overall death toll to 208.
But it is feared this toll may still rise.
Desperate relatives released images of missing loved ones over the weekend as floodwaters receded and the hope of finding survivors faded.
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