Platform for crooks?

Head of Telegram arrested in France

Pavel Durov(Bild: Wikipedia/www.dantaylorphotography.com (CC BY 2.0))

The founder of the messaging service Telegram, Pavel Durov, has been arrested in France. The 39-year-old was taken into police custody on Saturday evening after his arrival from Azerbaijan at Le Bourget airport, as reported by broadcasters TF1 and BFMTV as well as other media, citing investigative circles. 

According to French media reports, Durov was wanted in France because the authorities had launched preliminary investigations against him on suspicion that he was complicit in drug trafficking, fraud and child abuse offenses by failing to intervene in Telegram and failing to cooperate with law enforcement. According to TF1, an investigation could be opened against Durov on Sunday.

Russian embassy involved
In view of the information about Durov's arrest, the Russian embassy in France immediately took the necessary steps in such a situation, according to a statement from the foreign ministry published by Tass. Efforts are being made to clarify the situation, "although the businessman's representatives have not made a request".

Durov founded Telegram with his brother Nikolai after both had already launched the Vkontakte network, a kind of Russian Facebook. Telegram is one of the most important online networks in Russia and is also used by many authorities and politicians for communication. In the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, the service is used by both sides to send messages.

Telegram is said to tolerate hate speech and calls for violence
The Durov brothers promise to protect the data of Telegram users. The Telegram makers are accused of not taking sufficient action against hate speech and incitement to violence. Western and Russian authorities are said to have succeeded in persuading Telegram to delete Islamist terrorist propaganda.