The founder and CEO of messaging app Telegram, Pavel Durov, was reportedly detained at an airport in France. The investigation is reportedly focused on the criminal potential on Telegram.
According to the news of French TF1 television based on unnamed sources, Durov, who left his country Russia with the war in Ukraine and started living in the United Arab Emirates, was detained at Bourget Airport near the capital Paris.
While it is not known why Durov was detained, it was claimed that there was an arrest warrant for him in France.
Durov, whose fortune is estimated to be around $15 billion, reportedly focused on the criminal potential on Telegram in the investigation.
On the other hand, Elon Musk, the owner of the X platform, supported Durov and called for “freeing Durov”.
STATEMENT MADE FROM TELEGRAM
In a written statement made by Telegram, the detention of the application’s founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Durov in France was evaluated.
In the statement, which indicated that continuous work was being done on the application, the following expressions were used: “Telegram complies with EU laws, including the Digital Services Act. Durov has nothing to hide and travels to Europe frequently.”
The statement, which included information that approximately 1 billion people in the world use Telegram, included the following statements: “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for the abuse of this platform. We expect this situation to be resolved immediately.”
According to reports in the Russian and French press, Durov was detained yesterday for providing access to illegal content on Telegram.
Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova reported that a note was given to France requesting access to Durov.
WHO IS PAVEL DUROV?
Durov, who was also the founder of Russia’s popular social media site VK, left Russia in 2014.
Durov, who holds citizenship of France, Russia, the United Arab Emirates and St. Kitts and Nevis, is estimated to have a fortune of around $15 billion.
The number of monthly active users of Telegram, one of the world’s popular instant messaging and social media applications, reached 900 million people.
