Telegram founder and CEO Pavel Durov has been arrested in France and is currently in custody, according to a report from a reputable French news site TF1.
Durov was reportedly apprehended after arriving at Paris’s Le Bourget airport—known for servicing private jets—accompanied by a woman and his bodyguard, having traveled from Azerbaijan.
He was the target of a search warrant issued by OFMIN, an agency that investigates child sexual exploitation in France, stemming from a preliminary investigation.
The report revealed that billionaire Durov typically avoids extensive travel in Europe, likely to evade detainment; his arrest warrant was valid only within French territory.
“He made a mistake tonight. We don’t know why… Was this flight just a stopover? In any case, he’s locked up,” a source told TF1.
TF1 anticipates that Durov may meet with an investigating judge on Saturday night, potentially leading to an indictment on Sunday for “multiple offenses: terrorism, drugs, complicity, fraud, money laundering, receiving stolen goods, pedocriminal content,” and possibly more.
“Pavel Durov will almost certainly end up in pre-trial detention… On his platform, countless offenses and crimes have occurred for which he does nothing to moderate or report,” an investigator from France’s National Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF), who placed Durov in custody, reportedly stated.
