Telegram CEO Pavel Durov is allowed to leave France

Telegram messaging app founder and CEO Pavel Durov has been allowed to leave France despite an ongoing investigation into him.

"As you may have heard, I have just returned to Dubai after several months in France due to an investigation into criminal activity on Telegram. The process is still ongoing but it feels great to be home," Pavel Durov announced on Telegram, thanking the judges for allowing him to leave France, according to AFP.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov in Indonesia in 2017

Pavel Durov (41 years old) was born in Russia but lives in the UAE and has this country's nationality. He was arrested in France in August 2024 and detained for several days on charges of failing to control illegal content posted by Telegram users.

He was later released on bail of €5 million, but was banned from leaving France and had to report to police twice a week. According to the judges' decision, Mr. Durov was allowed to leave France from March 15 to April 7 and was not subject to the same house arrest measures as before.

Last year’s arrest was the first time a founder of a social media company had been arrested for content posted on its platform. Telegram is one of the world’s leading apps, with more than 900 million active users. Mr. Durov has been indicted on multiple charges of failing to prevent extremist content on Telegram.

AFP quoted an interrogation transcript from last year that showed Pavel Durov initially blamed French authorities for not informing Telegram about the alleged criminal activity. However, the businessman later admitted that he was aware of the seriousness of all the allegations.

In the March 17 article, Mr. Durov said that Telegram has over the years not only met but also performed well its legal obligations related to management, cooperation and crime prevention.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/ceo-telegram-pavel-durov-duoc-roi-khoi-phap-185250317220533998.htm