Simm gets 12 years for treason

  • 2009-02-26
  • From wire reports
TALLINN - Former senior public servantHerman Simm, 61, has been found guilty of treason and of passing onclassified information. He was sentenced to 12 years and sixmonths in prison.

The case was heard at a closed session under a compromise procedure on Feb. 25.

Sven Sillar, the defense lawyer of Heete Simm, 54,Herman Simm's wife, a suspected of accomplice of treason,told BNS that the public prosecutor's office had made noproposal to her concerning an agreement or had informedher of her case being closed.

Last September 21, the Harju County Court at an application by the Public Prosecutor's Office issueda warrant for the arrest of Herman Simm, head of thesecurity department at the Defense Ministry on the suspicionof spying for Russia as well as his wife, Heete Simm, lawyerat the Police Board, suspected of being an accomplice totreason.

Until November 2006 Herman Simm worked as head of thesecurity department at the Defense Ministry with access toclassified information of the state and it was his duty tosign agreements on the protection of classified informationwith Estonia's partner countries.

After five years of services as head of the securitydepartment at the Defense Ministry Simm became and adviserto the ministry and was in that office until last spring.

Herman Simm has been decorated with a Class IV WhiteStar Order and the Class II Service Badge of the DefenseMinistry, the Service Badge of the Information Board andthe Police memorial medal that he will apparently have togive up after the sentence enters into forces.