Pavel Durov, the Russian-born CEO and cofounder of Telegram, has been detained in France but the company says it has done nothing wrong and abides by EU law.
Telegram has said its co-founder, Pavel Durov, who has been arrested in France as part of a police investigation, “has nothing to hide” and said the app operates in according with the laws of the European Union.
Durov, a 39-year-old Russian-born billionaire who co-founded the app with his brother Nikolai, was arrested at Le Bourget airport near Paris after his private jet arrived from Azerbaijan on Saturday night.
Telegram, headquartered in Dubai, said its moderation was “within industry standards and constantly improving.”
The statement said: “Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe. It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform.”
“We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation. Telegram is with you all,” it added.
The French authorities have not commented on Durov’s arrest, as is common practice for a criminal investigation in France, but local media have reported an arrest warrant was issued, alleging Telegram has been used for money laundering, drug trafficking and sharing of content linked to the sexual abuse of children.
Durov, who has dual French and United Arab Emirates citizenship, founded the app in 2013 with his brother Nikolai, an expert in encryption.
‘No More Immigration’
Some governments have criticized Telegram for a lack of content moderation.
Earlier this month, in the wake of riots in England, government minister Jim McMahon told the BBC he was “concerned” by a list of immigration lawyers, with the phrase “no more immigration,” being circulated on Telegram.
Telegram has around a billion users and is particularly influential in Russia, Ukraine and other countries formerly members of the Soviet Union.
But it has been growing in Western Europe and North America and is ranked as one of the world’s biggest social media platforms after Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok and WeChat.
Durov’s arrest prompted a warning from the owner of Rumble, Chris Pavlovski, who said free speech in Europe was under attack.
