- Pavel Durov, Telegram’s CEO, was detained in France over charges related to content moderation issues
- French authorities' investigation into Durov involves accusations of Telegram enabling illegal activities such as money laundering, drug trafficking, others
- The situation has sparked international controversy as Russian officials criticised the arrest while UAE requested consular support for Durov
Pavel Durov, the billionaire CEO of Telegram, has been released from police custody in France and has been transferred to court for questioning as he faces the possibility of indictment.
The 39-year-old tech entrepreneur and founder was detained at Bourget Airport near Paris on Saturday, August 24. His arrest was related to accusations that Telegram’s content moderation has enabled illegal activities such as money laundering, drug trafficking, and the spread of pedophilic material.
The investigation leading to Durov’s arrest started on July 8, 2024, following an initial inquiry by Section J3 – JUNALCO (Fight against Cybercrime) of the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Why Durov’s arrest caused controversy
As a Russian, Durov’s arrest had sparked outrage among Russian government officials, who argued that it was politically driven and a demonstration of the West’s hypocrisy regarding free speech.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated on Tuesday, August 27, that the relationship between Russia and France has reached its "lowest" point following Durov’s arrest.
France was criticised by the Russian government for lodging "very serious" accusations against Durov, with a warning issued against any attempts to intimidate him.
However, Emmanuel Macron, France's President stated on his X account, formerly Twitter that Durov’s arrest was not politically motivated.
Macron said, “It is up to the justice system, in complete independence, to ensure that the law is respected. The arrest of the Telegram president on French territory took place as part of an ongoing judicial investigation. This is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to decide.”
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) stated that it is "monitoring" Durov’s case closely and has submitted an urgent request to the French government for the provision of all consular services.
As a dual citizen of France and the UAE, with Telegram headquartered in Dubai, the ministry stressed that the UAE places the highest priority on caring for its citizens, safeguarding their interests, managing their affairs, and ensuring they receive comprehensive support.
12-count charge against Pavel Durov, Telegram’s CEO
The 12-count charge against Pavel Durov, Telegram’s chief executive officer as revealed by the Tribunal Judiciaire De Paris, France read, “This judicial investigation was opened on charges of:
“1. Complicity; web-mastering an online platform to enable an illegal transaction in organised group.
“2. Refusal to communicate, at the request of competent authorities, information or documents necessary for carrying out and operating interceptions allowed by law.
“3. Complicity; possessing pornographic images of minors.
“4. Complicity; distributing, offering or making available pornographic images of minors, in organised groups.
“5. Complicity; acquiring, transporting, possessing, offering or selling narcotic substances.
“6. Complicity; offering, selling or making available, without legitimate reason, equipment, tools, programs or data designed for or adapted to get access to and to damage the operation of an automated data processing system.
“7. Complicity; organised fraud.
“8. Criminal association with a view to committing a crime or an offence punishable by 5 or more years of imprisonment.
“9. Laundering of the proceeds derived from organised group’s offences and crimes.
“10. Providing cryptology services aiming to ensure confidentiality without certified declaration.
“11. Providing a cryptology tool not solely ensuring authentication or integrity monitoring without prior declaration.
“12. Importing a cryptolog.”
X platform under scrutiny as EU warns Musk of penalties over illegal content
Meanwhile, TheRadar earlier reported that Thierry Breton, the European Commissioner for the Internal Market, warned X owner Elon Musk that the company could face penalties if it fails to tackle the spread of illegal content.
The commission also informed Musk and CEO Linda Yaccarino that the company could encounter penalties and restrictions in Europe if it fails to tackle illegal content, such as incitements to violence and hate speech, on its platform.