Telegram CEO Pavel Durov Arrested at French Airport: Reports

Pavel Durov, the CEO and founder of Telegram, was arrested at Bourget Airport outside Paris on Saturday evening, according to a report by Reuters citing French media.

The arrest occurred while Durov was traveling in his private jet from Azerbaijan. French authorities detained him based on an outstanding arrest warrant linked to a preliminary police investigation.

Photo Credit: PTI

The investigation reportedly focuses on Telegram's lack of moderation, which authorities believe has allowed criminal activities to proliferate on the platform.

Telegram, which was founded by Russian-born Durov, is a major messaging app, especially influential in Russia, Ukraine, and other former Soviet republics.

With 900 million active users, it ranks among the top social media platforms globally, and it aims to reach one billion users within the next year.

The app gained particular prominence during the Russia-Ukraine war, becoming a key source of information, often providing unfiltered and sometimes misleading content.

Both Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and the Kremlin have used Telegram to disseminate their messages during the conflict.

Despite pressure from various governments concerned about the lack of moderation, Durov has insisted that Telegram should remain a "neutral platform" and not a "player in geopolitics."

Currently based in Dubai, Durov left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he subsequently sold. His fortune is estimated by Forbes at $15.5 billion.

The Russian embassy in France stated that it had no knowledge of Durov's arrest and had not been contacted by his team, but it is taking "immediate" steps to clarify the situation.