Navy: Sub Commander Faked Death to End Affair

The commander of a nuclear submarine tried to concoct an ingenious plan to get himself out a jam, but the Hunt for Red October this is not. The Navy says Cmdr. Michael P. Ward II tried to end an affair by sending a fake email from a guy named "Bob" to his mistress saying he had been killed, reports AP. The airtight plan began to unravel when she showed up at his residence as a friend to offer condolences.

As a result, the Navy has relieved Ward as commanding officer of the USS Pittsburgh, a position he held for all of a week. He also might be booted from the Navy on a slew of related military violations. The unidentified mistress tells Connecticut newspaper The Day that the married-with-children Ward sent the fake email after she got pregnant. "I don't want revenge here," she says. "I want everyone to know the truth about Michael. He does not need to be commanding a submarine. He's a deceitful man." (More Navy stories.)