It's vital to use a webcam regularly when speaking to would be partners online from afar for several reasons.
The most obvious being, they could post a pic of someone else which might be what's happening to you.
Photo's don't paint the whole picture. They can be deceiving and portray the person to look better than they actually do or they could be old photo's.
With a webcam you can see their facial expressions/body language. Tells you a lot more about them.
Has she asked for money by the way? If she hasn't and you've been chatting for a year I would guess she's interested in being with you, although if her picture is fake I would imagine she's probably a lot less attractive and older.
I'm wondering about who could have sent that email. Who's know's your email address over there?
Perhaps she's already with a guy and he's found out about you and he sent the email.
Or it could be sent by someone vindictive.
You need to post her pic. If it is fake, you know what to do. If it isn't, you need to tread carefully, start using a webcam and find out an explanation for that email.
Good luck.
