A 43-year-old naval submarine commander found himself in over his head in an extramarital affair, and faked his own death to end the romance, according to military authorities.

Cmdr. Michael P. Ward II, who is married with children, allegedly met a 23-year-old Virginia woman, whose name has not been released, through a dating website last October, according to the New London Day. The 23-year-old says that Ward told her he was separated and working in "special ops."

She told the paper that Ward sent her emails under the name "Tony Moore," claiming that he had to communicate under a false name due to the nature of his work. She clarified that he did tell her his real name when they met in person.

In July, the woman allegedly received an ominous email, ostensibly from a man named "Bob," Fox News reports.

"[Ward] asked me to contact you if this ever happened," the email reads. "I am extremely sorry to tell you that he is gone. We tried everything we could to save him. I cannot say more. I am sorry it has to be this way."

He couldn't bail himself out that easily, however. The distraught woman drove out to Ward's home, where the new owner informed her that her ex-lover was alive, and had simply moved to Connecticut to assume command of a submarine, the USS Pittsburgh.