The subject reported the encounter, setting in train the investigation that led to Mr Simm's arrest.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry

If convicted, Mr Simm faces a jail term of between three and 15 years.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry

Mr Simm has made no public statement and his lawyer has not responded to requests for comment.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry

Starring John Simm, Life On Mars tells the story of a modern-day policeman who finds himself transported to the 1970s.

BBC: NEWS | Entertainment | Almost 6m experience Life on Mars

More intrigue surrounds the mysterious disappearance, at about the time of Mr Simm's arrest, of a contact who is an Italian-employed Spaniard.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry

The current series is also the last, and viewers will find out how Simm's character, Detective Inspector Sam Tyler, became stuck in the past.

BBC: NEWS | Entertainment | Almost 6m experience Life on Mars

Bruce Jenkyn-Jones and Ian Simm at Impax Asset Management run the three-year-old Impax Environmental Markets fund, a closed-end fund with 41 million pounds in assets.

FORBES

Mr Simm was already sidelined at the time of his arrest.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry

On September 21st Herman Simm, a middle-ranking civil servant in Estonia's defence ministry, was arrested, along with his wife, and charged with spying for an unnamed foreign power.

ECONOMIST: A sensational arrest inside Estonia��s defence ministry