Getty Maria was murdered in October

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The Tagesschau show, produced by the world's largest public broadcaster ARD, said the story was "too regional", but critics have blamed the decision on political correctness and trying to stamp out criticism of migrants. Medical student and migrant home volunteer Maria Ladenburger, who was the daughter of a high-ranking EU lawyer, was ambushed, raped and drowned in a river as she cycled home from a party in October. Afghan-born Hussein K, 17, who came to Germany as an illegal unaccompanied minor last year, has been arrested over her murder.

The killing, revealed over the weekend, reportedly sparked frenzied new waves of hatred and fear of refugees in Germany which let in more than 1.1million migrants last year. Even the head of the country's police union said her death would have been prevented had the open door asylum-seeker policy of Chancellor Angela Merkel been less lax.

Getty The teenager was raped and drowned

However, despite having a £5.5billion and 20,617 employees, ARD decided they did not want to cover the story to bring it to national attention in Germany. ARD's editor-in-chief Kai Gniffke said they "very rarely report on individual criminal cases".

After widespread outrage, Tagesschau eventually ran a report on Miss Ladenburger's murder where they interviewed Mrs Merkel who told viewers although the crime should be condemned the act of one cannot be a reflection of a whole group. Ansgar Heveling, a member of Mrs Merkel's CDU Party and chairman of the Bundestag Interior Committee, accused the broadcaster of trying to censor bad news about refugees.

Getty German media has been criticised for not covering stories which make migrants look bad

He said: "I think the decision of the Tagesschau is wrong because it naturally gives the impression that you do not want to report because the suspect is an unaccompanied minor asylum seeker. "Such an impression is fatal."

Migrants clash with police across Europe Wed, February 15, 2017 Migrants clash with each other in over crowded camps across Europe. Play slideshow EPA 1 of 107 Moroccan Police look at immigrants trying to jump the six-meter-high fence in Ceuta, Spanish enclave on the north of Africa, 09 December 2016.

German broadcasters have consistently been criticised since the migrant crisis began for not covering stories which show migrants in a bad light. One of the main instances was when more than 1,000 woman were sexually assaulted, raped and robbed, mainly by migrants, on New Year's Eve in Cologne.