Telegram founder transferred to French court to face possible charges 

Russian-born Telegram boss Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation after his arrest as part of a probe into organised crime on the social media and messaging app.

Durov’s detention after he landed in Paris on a private jet on Saturday has put the spotlight on the criminal liability of app providers and fuelled debate on where freedom of speech ends and enforcement of the law begins.

French judicial authorities on Wednesday placed Durov, who is a French citizen, under formal investigation for allegedly failing to cooperate with authorities in criminal investigations and aiding and abetting criminal offences on his messaging app, among other offences.

Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement that an investigative judge found there were grounds to formally investigate Durov on all the charges for which he was initially arrested.

The charges include suspected complicity in running an online platform that allows illicit transactions, images of child sex abuse, drug trafficking and fraud, as well as the refusal to communicate information to authorities, money laundering and providing cryptographic services to criminals.

Telegram’s “near total absence of a response” to authorities’ requests for cooperation in criminal cases led the Paris prosecutor’s office cybercrime unit to open an investigation in February 2024, Beccuau said.

“Other French investigation services and public prosecutors’ offices as well as various partners within Eurojust, in particular Belgian ones, shared the same observation” about Telegram’s lack of compliance, she said.

Durov’s lawyer, David-Olivier Kaminski, told the AFP news agency that it was “absurd” to suggest he could be implicated in any crime committed on the app, adding: “Telegram complies in all respects with European rules concerning digital technology.”

Being placed under formal investigation in France does not imply guilt or necessarily lead to trial but indicates that judges consider there is enough to the case to proceed with the probe. Investigations can last years before being sent to trial or shelved.

Durov was granted bail on condition that he pay a five-million-euro ($5.56m) deposit. He is also under the obligation to sign in with the police twice a week and is not allowed to leave France.

In a statement on Monday, Telegram said it abided by European Union laws and its moderation was “within industry standards and constantly improving”.

“Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe,” it said. “It is absurd to claim that a platform, or its owner, are responsible for abuse of that platform.”

In addition to Russia and France, Durov is also a citizen of the United Arab Emirates and the Caribbean island nation of Saint Kitts and Nevis.

The UAE Foreign Ministry said Tuesday that it was “closely following the case” and had asked France to provide Durov “with all the necessary consular services in an urgent manner.”

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he hoped that Durov “has all the necessary opportunities for his legal defence” and added that Moscow stands “ready to provide all necessary assistance and support” to the Telegram CEO as a Russian citizen.

“But the situation is complicated by the fact that he is also a citizen of France,” Peskov said.

Faced with accusations from Russia and X owner Elon Musk that France is stifling freedom of speech with Durov’s arrest, President Emmanuel Macron took the unusual step on Monday of posting on X about what he called “false information”.

Macron said Monday that Durov’s arrest was not a political move but part of an independent investigation.

Macron wrote that his country “is deeply committed” to freedom of expression but “freedoms are upheld within a legal framework, both on social media and in real life, to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights”.