Pavel Durov, detained in France, has nothing to hide, Telegram says

[August 26, 2024]  By Tassilo Hummel and Elizabeth Pineau

PARIS (Reuters) -Pavel Durov, the Russian-born founder of Telegram who was arrested in Paris, has nothing to hide it is absurd to hold an owner responsible for abuse of the messaging and social media platform, Telegram said in a statement.

Durov, a 39-year-old billionaire cast as "Russia's Mark Zuckerberg", was arrested at Le Bourget airport outside Paris shortly after landing on a private jet late on Saturday from Azerbaijan.

The arrest of the Telegram CEO prompted a warning from Moscow to Paris that he should be accorded his rights, and criticism from X owner Elon Musk who said that free speech in Europe was under attack.

Though there has been no official French comment on the arrest, French news channel franceinfo said that Durov was still in custody on Monday and that he could remain in custody for up to four days.

Telegram, in a short statement released after midnight Paris time, gave no details of the arrest but said the Dubai-based company abided by European Union laws and its moderation was "within industry standards and constantly improving".

"Telegram's CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe," Telegram said. "It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform."

"We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all."

Durov, who has dual French and United Arab Emirates citizenship, was arrested as part of a preliminary police investigation into allegedly allowing a wide range of crimes due to a lack of moderators on Telegram and a lack of cooperation with police, a French police source said.

A cybersecurity gendarmerie unit and France's national anti-fraud police unit are leading the investigation, the source said, adding that the investigative judge was specialized in organized crime.

When asked about his arrest, the Kremlin on Monday said it had yet to see any official French accusations against Durov.

"We do not yet know what exactly Durov is accused of," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a news briefing.

"With what exactly are they trying to incriminate Durov? Without (knowing), it would probably be wrong to make any statements," Peskov said.

FRENCH CITIZEN

Telegram was founded by Durov, who left Russia in 2014 after he refused to comply with demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he has sold.

The encrypted application, with close to 1 billion users, is particularly influential in Russia, Ukraine and the republics of the former Soviet Union. It is ranked as one of the major social media platforms after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat.

Founder and CEO of Telegram Pavel Durov delivers a keynote speech during the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain February 23, 2016. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo

Durov, who was born in Soviet Leningrad and graduated from St Petersburg State University, lists his political views as "libertarian" and says he was inspired by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs.

He obtained his French passport in 2021 through a special procedure for high-profile foreigners exempting them from the usual legal requirements, including having lived in the country for at least five years.

The French foreign ministry, which is in charge of the procedure, did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment. The Elysee presidential office also declined to comment, deferring to the foreign ministry.

According to French law, any foreigner can be handed citizenship under the special rules provided he speaks French and "contributes through his outstanding work to France's influence and the prosperity of its international economic relations".

Durov never lived in France and it was unclear what special link he had to the country. On June 10, Durov posted in his Telegram channel: "As a French citizen, I agree that France is the best holiday destination."

Snapchat founder Evan Spiegel received French citizenship in 2018 under the same program, local media reported at the time. Snap did not respond to request for comment.

Russian state media reported that Durov also had citizenship of Russia and of St Kitts and Nevis. Reuters was unable to verify those reports.

Estimated by Forbes to have a fortune of $15.5 billion, Durov said in April some governments had sought to pressure him, but the app should remain a neutral platform and not a "player in geopolitics".

Durov, whose arrest led news bulletins in Russia, came up with the idea for an encrypted messaging app while facing pressure from Russian authorities. His younger brother, Nikolai, designed the encryption.

"I would rather be free than to take orders from anyone," Durov said in April about his exit from Russia and search for a home for his company, which included stints in Berlin, London, Singapore and San Francisco.

Russian lawmaker Maria Butina, who spent 15 months in U.S. prison for acting as an unregistered Russian agent, said Durov "is a political prisoner - a victim of a witch-hunt by the West".

(Reporting by Tassilo Hummel, Elizabeth Pineau and Gabriel Stargardter in Paris and Guy Faulconbridge in Moscow; Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Alison Williams)

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