For a deposit worth millions
Telegram boss Durow released from custody
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The French judiciary is investigating Telegram founder Durow for suspected aiding and abetting crimes. The Franco-Russian will now be released from custody under strict conditions. He has to pay a deposit of five million euros and is not allowed to leave France.
In France, the public prosecutor's office has conditionally released the arrested boss of the messaging app Telegram, Pawel Durow, from custody. As the Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau announced, the responsible investigating judges also opened an investigation against the 39-year-old. Durow is therefore accused of numerous crimes in connection with organized crime. Durov, who is originally from Russia and is also a French citizen, was arrested on Saturday evening at Le Bourget Airport near Paris.
French investigators accuse him of not doing enough to prevent Telegram from being used for criminal purposes. He is said to be guilty of “aiding and abetting the administration of an online platform to facilitate an illegal transaction”. Durow is also accused of refusing to hand over documents requested by the authorities. Investigators are also investigating allegations that Durow was guilty of “disseminating child pornography in an organized group” and of drug trafficking, fraud and money laundering. According to AFP information, he is also accused of “serious acts of violence” against one of his children.
Lawyer: “Completely absurd”
In return for his provisional release, the Telegram boss must pay a deposit of five million euros, report to the police twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory. Durow's lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, said at the opening of the investigation against his client that it was “completely absurd to think that the head of an online network (…) could be involved in crimes.” Telegram “complies in every respect with European laws on digital technology.”
Since its founding in 2013, the Telegram platform has established itself as an alternative to US platforms. As a rule, it refuses to hand over any user data to the authorities, even in the case of criminal offenses. Critics accuse the online service of promoting the spread of false information as well as pedophile or right-wing extremist content and conspiracy theories. The French authority for the prevention of violence against minors obtained the arrest warrant against Durow after preliminary investigations into allegations such as fraud, drug trafficking, online bullying, organized crime and promoting terrorism.
