French authorities have extended the detention of Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov after he was arrested at a Paris airport over allegations that his messaging app facilitates criminality including money laundering and drug trafficking.
An investigating magistrate ordered that Durov, 39, have his detention extended beyond Sunday night, the AFP news agency reported, citing an unnamed source close to the investigation.
Durov can be held for questioning for up to 96 hours, after which he must be charged or released from custody.
Local sources said that Durov had been travelling on his private jet from Azerbaijan and that a French arrest warrant targeted him as part of a preliminary investigation.
France’s OFMIN, an agency tasked with combating violence against minors, is investigating Russian-born Durov in a probe into alleged offences including fraud, drug trafficking, cyberbullying, organised crime and promotion of terrorism, according to the AFP, which quoted officials speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Franco-Russian billionaire is accused of failing to halt the use of his app for criminality.
TF1 TV and BFM TV, both quoting unidentified sources, said the investigation is focused on a lack of moderation on the platform.
Telegram said that Durov “has nothing to hide” and travels frequently in Europe.
“Telegram abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act — its moderation is within industry standards,” the platform said in a statement. “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform.”
The Russian embassy in France has demanded consular access to Durov and demanded that his rights be ensured, Russian state news agency TASS reported.
The embassy said France has so far “avoided engagement” on the situation with Durov. Russian diplomats are in contact with Durov’s lawyer, the embassy said.
Commenting on the arrest, French President Emmanuel Macron insisted that there was no political motive, and that Durov had been detained as part of a judicial inquiry.
“I have seen false information regarding France following the arrest of Pavel Durov. France is deeply committed to freedom of expression and communication, to innovation, and to the spirit of entrepreneurship. It will remain so,” Macron said in a post on X.
“In a state governed by the rule of law, freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights. It is up to the judiciary, in full independence, to enforce the law.”
Russia-Ukraine war
Telegram, which has close to 1 billion users, was created by Durov and his brother in 2013 in Russia.
Durov fled Russia in 2014 in search of a new home for his company, trying out cities including Berlin, Singapore and San Francisco, before settling in Dubai.
After Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Telegram became the main source of unfiltered and sometimes graphic content from both sides in the war.
The app is heavily used by Russian and Ukrainian officials, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Several countries in Europe, including France, have raised concerns about the app related to security and data privacy.
Responding to Durov’s arrest, Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s permanent representative to the United Nations in Vienna, accused France of acting as a “totalitarian” society.
“Some naive persons still don’t understand that if they play more or less visible role in international information space it is not safe for them to visit countries which move towards much more totalitarian societies,” Ulyanov wrote on X.
Several Russian bloggers have called for protests outside French embassies worldwide.
Ben Aris, the editor in chief of bne IntelliNews, told Al Jazeera that Durov is also in trouble in Russia since he refused to give the Kremlin access to the electronic keys which would let them read private Telegram messages.
Russia began blocking Telegram in 2018 after the app refused to comply with a court order to grant state security services access to its users’ messages.
“Durov was in Azerbaijan where Putin recently was… He is probably trying to lobby Putin to stop the block of Telegram in the country,” Aris said.
Meanwhile, tech mogul and billionaire Elon Musk also criticised Durov’s arrest, writing on X: “It’s 2030 in Europe, and you’re being executed for liking a meme.”
