CEO of Telegram arrested on 12 criminal counts: Prosecutor

PARIS - Paris public prosecutor on Monday announced the charges on which the Telegram founder Pavel Durov was arrested in Paris a day before, in a global first for a messaging service.

According to Paris Public Prosecutor Laure Beccuau, the Telegram founder and chief executive officer (CEO) is accused of 12 criminal offenses, including failing to take action against Telegram users involved in cyberbullying, sharing pedophilic content, and the glorification of terrorism.

Durov can now be detained for up to 96 hours until Aug 28, Beccuau said. He is subject to the criminal procedure for organized crime offenses, including illegal transactions in an organized group, possessing pornographic images of minors, and offering or making available pornographic images of minors.

Beccuau said the arrest "comes in the context of a judicial investigation opened on July 8, 2024". It also concerns "refusal to communicate, at the request of competent authorities, information or documents necessary for carrying out and operating interceptions allowed by law," the Paris prosecutor added.

The Russian Embassy in Paris has begun working on the case, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova said on Sunday, adding that it is Russian diplomats' duty to respond to cases involving the detention of Russian citizens abroad.

Responding to the arrest, the Telegram group said on its X account that the company "abides by European Union (EU) laws, including the Digital Services Act". "It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for abuse of that platform," it added.

Tech giant and owner of the US social media platform X Elon Musk, along with former US National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, condemned this arrest on Sunday, citing a violation of the freedom of speech.

Following a tweet with the tag #FreePavel on X, Musk wrote several other posts stressing the importance of protecting free speech and democracy.

Meanwhile, Snowden said on X that the arrest of Durov is "an assault on the basic human rights of speech and association".

"I am surprised and deeply saddened that (French President Emmanuel) Macron has descended to the level of taking hostages as a means for gaining access to private communications. It lowers not only France, but the world," he said.

However, French President Macron said on X on Monday that the arrest of Durov is "in no way a political decision", calling it "part of an ongoing judicial investigation".

The French head of state stressed that his country is "deeply" committed to freedom of expression.

"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," he added.

According to the French daily Le Figaro, Durov's arrest warrant was issued by a special unit within the French Interior Minister tasked with combating crimes against minors, in coordination with various investigative services.

Durov, also holding French citizenship, founded Telegram in 2013. The messaging app allows up to 200,000 members per chat group and claims not to collect users' information or censor content.

With approximately 900 million subscribers, it is now one of the world's leading messaging platforms and influential in Russia. It has become a critical source of information during the Russia-Ukraine conflict.