In a real-world tragedy ripped from the pages of "Romeo and Juliet," a woman killed herself, and her two children, after hearing about her husband's death -- except the man had only faked his demise to get an insurance payout.

The 34-year-old man, who was identified by the surname He, was presumed dead after his vehicle was discovered in a river on Sept. 19, the BBC reported. The man’s body was not recovered.

But He made a major misstep: He never told his wife about the plot.

So the 31-year-old woman, who believed she was a widow, grabbed her two children, ages 3 and 4, and jumped into a pond after posting a suicide note online. The message said she was “coming to accompany” her husband in the afterlife, the BBC reported. The trio's bodies were found in a pond near their residence Oct. 11.

The husband turned himself into Xinhua police Friday and was “detained on charges of insurance fraud and intentional damage to property,” police said in a statement.

In September, He purchased the insurance plan -- that he later tried to claim -- worth $110,000. But his wife was unaware of the purchase, police said. He allegedly had $14,435 worth of loans at the time of his “death.” In a video posted online, He said he borrowed the money for his daughter’s treatment for epilepsy.

Fox News