Durov, a 39-year-old billionaire chosen to play “RussiaMark Zuckerberg,” was arrested at Le Bourget airport outside Paris shortly after landing on a private jet on Saturday night from Azerbaijan.
The arrest of Telegram Executive Director It prompted a warning from Moscow that Paris should be given its rights, and criticism from X owner Elon Musk, who said freedom of speech in Europe was under attack.
Although there has been no official French comment on the arrest, French news channel franceinfo said Durov was still in custody on Monday and could remain in custody for up to four days.
Telegram, in a brief statement published after midnight Paris time, gave no details of the arrest but said the Dubai-based company respected European Union laws and that its moderation was “within industry standards and constantly improving.”
“Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and frequently travels around Europe,” Telegram says. “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the abuse of that platform.”
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“We are awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all.” Durov, who has dual French and UAE nationality, was arrested as part of a preliminary police investigation for allegedly enabling a wide range of crimes due to a lack of moderators on Telegram and a failure to cooperate with police, a French police source said.
A cybersecurity gendarmerie unit and France’s national anti-fraud police unit are leading the investigation, the source said, adding that the investigating judge was specialized in organized crime.
Asked about his arrest, the Kremlin said Monday it had not yet seen any official French charges against Durov.
“We still don’t know exactly what Durov is accused of,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a news conference.
“What exactly are they trying to incriminate Durov with? Without knowing this, it would probably be wrong to make any statements,” Peskov said.
Telegram was founded by Durov, who left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he sold.
The encrypted app, with nearly a billion users, is especially influential in Russia, Ukraine and the republics of the former Soviet Union. It is ranked as one of the top social media platforms after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat.
Durov, who was born in Soviet Leningrad and graduated from St. Petersburg State University, calls his political views “libertarian” and says he was inspired by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.
He obtained his French passport in 2021 through a special procedure for high-profile foreigners that exempts them from the usual legal requirements, including having lived in the country for at least five years.
The French Foreign Ministry, which is in charge of the procedure, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The Elysee presidential office also declined to comment, referring to the Foreign Ministry.
Under French law, any foreigner can obtain citizenship under special rules, provided that he or she speaks French and “contributes through his or her outstanding work to the influence of France and the prosperity of its international economic relations.”
Durov never lived in France and it is unclear what special connection he had with the country. On June 10, Durov posted on his Telegram channel: “As a French citizen, I agree that France is the best holiday destination.”
Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel received French citizenship in 2018 under the same program, local media reported at the time. Snap did not respond to a request for comment.
Russian state media reported that Durov also had citizenship of Russia and St Kitts and Nevis. Reuters was unable to verify those reports.
Durov, whose fortune is estimated at $15.5 billion by Forbes, said in April that some governments had tried to pressure him but that the app should remain a neutral platform and not a “player in geopolitics.”
Durov, whose arrest made headlines in Russia, was the one who came up with the idea of creating an encryption system. messaging app While facing pressure from Russian authorities, his younger brother Nikolai designed the cipher.
“I’d rather be free than take orders from anyone,” Durov said in April of leaving Russia and searching for a home for his company, which included stints in Berlin, London, Singapore and San Francisco.
Russian lawmaker Maria Butina, who spent 15 months in a US prison for acting as an unregistered Russian agent, said Durov “is a political prisoner, a victim of a witch hunt by the West.”
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