Telegram messaging app says its detained chief Durov has ‘nothing to hide’

French broadcast media say popular messaging service’s chief has been detained at Paris airport

France Telegram CEO (Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Messaging service Telegram said the company’s chief Pavel Durov who was detained at a Paris airport “has nothing to hide”.

Mr Durov, citizen of both France and Russia, was detained at Paris-Le Bourget Airport on Saturday after he landed in France from Azerbaijan.

Investigators with the French customs department notified Mr Durov that he was being placed in police custody.

French prosecutors declined to comment on Mr Durov's arrest in line with regulations during an ongoing investigation, according to the Associated Press.

Local media reported that Mr Durov, 39, was the subject of an arrest warrant on allegations that his platform has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking, and other offences.

The warrant was issued by France at the request of the special unit at the country's interior ministry in charge of investigating crimes against minors, including online sexual exploitation, such as possession and distribution of child sexual abuse content and grooming for sexual purposes, according to reports.

Telegram said it abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act and its moderation is within industry standards.

“We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation,” the company said.

“Almost a billion users globally use Telegram as means of communication and as a source of vital information...It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform,” the messaging platform said in a post on X.

Telegram was founded by Mr Durov and his brother in the wake of the Russian government’s crackdown after mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Moscow at the end of 2011 and 2012.

The demonstrations prompted Russian authorities to clamp down on the digital space, adopting regulations that forced internet providers to block websites and cellphone operators to store call records and messages that could be shared with security services.

In the increasingly repressive environment, Telegram and its pro-privacy rhetoric offered a convenient way for Russians to communicate and share news.

In 2018, Russian media watchdog Roskomnadzor moved to block Telegram over its refusal to hand over encryption keys, but ultimately failed to fully restrict access to the app.

Telegram continued to be widely used — including by government institutions — and the ban was dropped two years later. In March 2024, Roskomnadzor said that Telegram was working with the Russian government to a certain extent and had removed more than 256,000 posts with prohibited content at Roskomnadzor’s request.

Telegram also continues to be a popular source of news in Ukraine, where both media outlets and officials use it to share information on the war, and deliver missile and air raid alerts.

A French judicial official suggested that Durov could appear before a judge later Sunday to determine whether he will remain in custody. The official wasn’t authorized to be named publicly during an ongoing investigation.

“If the person concerned is to be brought before a judge today, it is only in the context of the possible extension of his police custody measure — a decision that must be taken and notified by an investigating judge,” the official said.

Telegram said its chief, Mr Durov, has “nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe”.

Telegram CEO Pavel Durov (Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Western governments have often criticized Telegram for lack of content moderating on the messaging service, which experts say opens up the messaging platform for potential use in money laundering, drug trafficking, and allowing the sharing of content linked to sexual exploitation of minors.

Russian government officials expressed outrage at Durov’s arrest, with some highlighting what they said was the West's double standards on freedom of speech.

“In 2018, a group of 26 NGOs, including Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Freedom House, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, and others, condemned the Russian court’s decision to block Telegram,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

“Do you think this time they’ll appeal to Paris and demand Durov’s release?” Zakharova said in a post on her personal Telegram account.

Officials at the Russian Embassy in Paris had requested access to Durov, Zakharova told Russian state news outlet RIA Novosti, but she added that French authorities view Durov’s French citizenship as his primary one.