After four days in detention, Pavel Durov, one of Telegram’s executive and creative directors, has been released after paying a bond of EUR 5 million, but has been placed under judicial supervision, will have to appear twice a week before the police and is prohibited from leaving France. Durov was arrested by the French Air Transport Gendarmerie on 24 August on the runway at Paris-Le Bourget airport. The Children's Office of the National Bureau of Criminal Investigation (OFMIN) issued an arrest warrant against Durov for alleged crimes of drug trafficking, cyberbullying, fraud, organized crime or apology of terrorism, according to Axier López in the ARGIA Weekly. He is also accused of lack of moderation in the platform and lack of cooperation with the authorities of the country.

The Court of Justice in Paris has issued a press release accusing Durov of twelve seats. These charges include the administration of an online platform that allows an illegal organised gang transaction to be carried out, the refusal to disclose, at the request of the authorities, the information and documents necessary to carry out and exploit the interventions permitted by law, or the dissemination of the pornographic image of minors, their offer or their making available in an organized band. The Paris prosecutor, Laure Beccuau, said that Telegram had to deal with French criminal cases in many cases and that “almost all” did not respond to requests for cooperation from the authorities. Beccuau pointed out that prosecutors from all over France, as well as judicial authorities in Belgium and other European countries, had "the same view", according to the New York Times newspaper.

Telegram said Durov “has nothing to hide”

The telegram responded via social media to Durov's arrest as part of a police operation. The courier company stated that it “complies with EU law”, including the “Digital Services Act”, and highlighted Durov’s innocence: “The telegram executive, Pavel Durov, has nothing to hide and often travels throughout Europe.” They denounced that the platform or the owner of the platform "it is absurd that they are responsible for the abuse" and that "they hoped that the situation would be resolved as soon as possible".

Durov quarrels with justice

In recent years, Durov has had several discussions with justice. One of the last was in March, when the judge of the National Audience Santiago Pedraz requested the complete blockade of Telegram, at the request of the companies Mediaset, Atresmedia and Movistar Plus, because “in some channels content protected by copyright” of the platform was shared.

On 28 August, a new investigation was opened in France against Durov, who resided in Paris "for serious violence" against one of his children, according to the AFP agency. The child currently lives in Switzerland with his mother, whom he has taken care of. The mother filed a complaint in Switzerland in January 2023, according to the same source.

Durov has a Russian, French and Emirati passport. He lives in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where Telegram is headquartered. Durov left Russia after refusing to comply with the closing demands of the communities possessed by the Russian political opposition on the social network Vkontakte, created by himself.