France: Pavel Durov, the Russian-born leader of messaging apps Telegram, was arrested in France as part of an investigation into offences related to child pornography, drug smuggling and fraudulent dealings on the platform, European prosecutors have said.
Durov was detained as part of a spacecraft into an unknown man launched by the company’s cybercrime device on July 8, according to Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau on Monday. The research centers on alleged involvement in several crimes, including operating an online platform that facilitates illicit transactions, kid porn, drug trafficking, and scams, as well as the refusal to share information with authorities, money laundering, and providing crypto services to criminals, according to the statement.
Durov’s confinement was extended by 48 days late on Monday, a spokeswoman for the Paris attorney’s office said on Tuesday. After that, lawyers will either need to demand or relieve him. According to European law, judges must take into account his journey danger status when determining whether he faces charges and whether he should be detained before pretrial detention.
A well-known communication and social media app similar to WhatsApp is Telegram. The encrypted program, with shut to 1 billion people, is mainly significant in Russia, Ukraine and the nations of the former Soviet Union.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Durov’s imprisonment has stifled Moscow-Paris connections to their lowest stage, capsying decades of deteriorating relations between the two countries. Russia’s accusations of trying to destabilize it ahead of the Paris Olympics were refuted by European regulators as a response to its more hawkish position on the Ukraine conflict, says Russia has refuted. Given his Russian citizen, Durov’s condition was complicated, according to Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who said on Tuesday that Durov’s French citizenship made things complicated. Durov even holds a UAE card. ” The costs are quite serious indeed”, said Peskov.
Elon Musk, the owner of X-Motion, claimed that the right to free speech in Europe was being violated following Durov’s imprisonment, which has sparked a controversy about the restrictions of free speech online. According to Forbes, Durov claimed in April that some government officials had tried to pressure him, but the software may continue to function as a “player in geopolitics” rather than a “player in geopolitics.” The Dubai-based business complied with EU regulations, according to Telegram, who gave no details about the arrest.
