French prosecutors said the arrest of Telegram co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov was part of a broader investigation into the social media app, which has been accused of allowing criminal activity to flourish by failing to cooperate reliably with law enforcement.
Paris prosecutor Laure Vecuot said in a statement that Durov, 39, was suspected of taking part in a global drug trafficking, pedophilia and fraud ring that allegedly took place on Telegram, given the platform’s refusal to cooperate with police.
“At the heart of this case is a lack of moderation and cooperation on the part of the platforms,” Jean-Michel Bernigaud, director general of France’s police prefectural government, added in a statement.
The investigation comes after Telegram, which values user privacy, came under fire from a number of governments around the world for allowing extremists and organized criminals to communicate covertly on the app.
Durov fled Russia after reportedly refusing to hand over the app’s encryption keys. Telegram was banned in Russia in 2018 but was allowed back in 2020.
Currently, Russian authorities and military are using it extensively in their offensive against Ukraine. According to the BBC.
French authorities said Durov would remain in custody for at least two more days but details of the charges he will face remain unclear, much to the dismay of his supporters, who have condemned the arrest as an attack on freedom of speech.
Aaron Teare, director of public advocacy at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), said Durov’s arrest was troubling because it suggested it was punishment for not policing Telegram “more aggressively.”
“Making platform owners legally liable for what their users say would put pressure on them to crack down on even lawful speech to minimize risk,” Theal told the Post.
“This underscores the importance of the constitutional and legal protections we enjoy in the United States that allow online platforms to provide a forum for the free exchange of ideas without being prosecuted or sued out of existence,” he added.
Christopher Terry, an internet policy expert and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, told the Post that while police could sue Telegram for alleged crimes orchestrated through its service, the arrests could have a chilling effect on free speech around the world.
“The arrest of media workers and operators always represents some threat to freedom of speech and freedom of the press, even in places where there is no First Amendment or its protections,” Terry said.
X owner Elon Musk was among the first wave to defend Durov, sharing a video in which Durov praised X for spearheading innovation and freedom of speech, writing “#FreePavel.”
French President Emmanuel Macron stressed on Monday that Durov’s arrest was “not a political decision at all.”
“France values above all freedom of expression and communication, innovation and entrepreneurship,” Macron wrote on X following Durov’s arrest.
In an interview earlier this year, Durov claimed Telegram was a neutral social media platform and that he had fled Russia to avoid orders from Moscow. Tucker Carlson.
Telegram has more than 900 million users worldwide, and Forbes estimates Durov’s net worth at around $15.5 billion.
“It is absurd to claim that the platform or its owners are responsible for misuse of its platform,” Telegram said in a statement on Sunday.
