August 25th 2024.
On Saturday evening, billionaire Pavel Durov, co-founder and CEO of Telegram, was detained at Bourget airport in Paris, according to reports from media outlets quoting police officials. Durov was on his private jet and had been targeted by an arrest warrant in France, as reported by TF1 TV on their website.
The 39-year-old had been traveling from Azerbaijan and was taken into custody at around 8 p.m. local time. He was expected to appear in court the following day. Durov, who holds dual citizenship of France and the United Arab Emirates, currently resides in Dubai where Telegram is headquartered. According to Forbes, he has a fortune of $15.5 billion.
When reached for comment, Telegram did not immediately respond to a request from Reuters. The Russian embassy in France has also taken immediate steps to clarify the situation, as stated by a representative to TASS. They mentioned that there had been no appeal from Durov's team to the embassy, but they were proactively taking steps.
Durov and his brother, Nikolai, founded Telegram in 2013, and it now boasts around 900 million active users. The messaging app offers end-to-end encryption and allows users to create channels to quickly share information with followers.
The arrest warrant for Durov was issued by France's OFMIN, an agency focused on preventing violence against minors. They are conducting a preliminary investigation into alleged offences, including fraud, drug trafficking, cyberbullying, organized crime, and the promotion of terrorism, according to a source close to the case. One investigator expressed frustration with Telegram's "impunity" and stated that they were surprised Durov had come to Paris despite knowing he was wanted.
Durov's troubles with the Russian government began in 2014 when he refused to shut down opposition communities on his previous social media platform, VK, which he had sold. Since then, he has resided in Dubai and has been a vocal advocate for privacy and freedom of expression.
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