Telegram CEO Pavel Durov has been apprehended by French authorities at an airport located north of Paris. Reports from French media indicate that Mr. Durov was taken into custody upon the arrival of his private jet at Le Bourget Airport. The 39-year-old was reportedly detained based on a warrant pertaining to alleged offences associated with the widely used messaging application.
Russia's TASS state news agency has stated that the Russian embassy in France is actively engaging in clarifying the unfolding situation. According to French television channel TF1's website, Durov was traveling aboard his private aircraft at the time of his detention.
Telegram enjoys significant popularity in countries like Russia, Ukraine, and former Soviet Union nations. The app faced a ban in Russia back in 2018 due to Pavel Durov's previous refusal to surrender user data. However, this ban was later lifted in 2021. Telegram holds a prominent position among social media platforms, following giants such as Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok, and WeChat.
Pavel Durov established Telegram in 2013 and departed from Russia in 2014 after declining government requests to shut down opposition communities on his VKontakte social media platform, which he subsequently sold.
