Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of the messaging app Telegram, was reportedly arrested at an airport in France on Saturday evening.
BREAKING: Telegram founder Pavel Durov arrested in France pic.twitter.com/7XcKdzah9E
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According to French media, the 39-year-old billionaire was detained by French authorities as he disembarked from his private jet at Le Bourget airport, located just outside of Paris.
Durov had arrived from Azerbaijan and was accompanied by his bodyguard and a woman at the time of his arrest.
French outlet TF1 Info reported that Durov was taken into custody by the Air Transport Gendarmerie (GTA) around 8 p.m.
The arrest was based on a search warrant issued by French officials as part of a preliminary investigation. The warrant, however, would only be enforceable if Durov was on French soil, which he was at the time of his detention.
The investigation surrounding Durov reportedly involves concerns over Telegram’s role in facilitating illegal activities. Authorities believe that the platform’s lack of moderation, its refusal to cooperate with law enforcement, and the tools it provides—such as disposable phone numbers and cryptocurrency transactions—have made it a haven for drug trafficking, pedophilia, and fraud.
Durov, a Russian-born entrepreneur, is best known for founding the social networking site VKontakte (VK) and later Telegram, which has gained worldwide popularity for its strong emphasis on privacy and security.
BREAKING: Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, arrested in France and facing 20 years in jail for refusing to censor his platform. The charges include terrorism, money laundering, and more—looks like they’re targeting anyone who defends free speech. pic.twitter.com/vK4u6ae1Gk
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Born on October 10, 1984, in Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg), Russia, Durov has often been referred to as the “Russian Mark Zuckerberg” due to the similarities between VK and Facebook.
In 2006, Durov launched VKontakte alongside his older brother Nikolai. VK quickly became Russia’s most popular social network, but Durov’s tenure at the company was marked by conflict with Russian authorities.
He repeatedly resisted government demands to censor content and hand over user data, leading to escalating tensions.
In 2014, Durov was forced to sell his stake in VK and resign from the company under pressure from Russian authorities.
This followed his refusal to block a VK group supporting the Ukrainian Euromaidan protests and his rejection of demands to provide user data to the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).
After leaving VK, Durov shifted his focus to Telegram, which he had launched a year earlier with his brother.
Telegram has since gained a global user base, largely due to its features like end-to-end encrypted messaging, channels for large audiences, and self-destructing messages.
However, its commitment to privacy has also attracted criticism from various governments, which argue that the platform is used by criminals and terrorists to communicate without detection.
Following his departure from VK, Durov has lived in self-imposed exile, primarily due to his ongoing conflicts with the Russian government over issues of censorship, privacy, and political freedom.
He has been a vocal critic of the Russian government and its efforts to control online platforms.
In a statement after leaving Russia, Durov said that the country was “incompatible with internet business at the moment.”
Since then, he has continued to live abroad, focusing on developing Telegram while avoiding further legal entanglements with Russian authorities.
The arrest in France adds a new chapter to Durov’s complex and contentious relationship with law enforcement, raising questions about the future of Telegram and its operations amid growing scrutiny from international authorities.
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