A flurry of conspiracy theories and drama has resulted from Pavel Durov’s arrest at a Paris airports. But as the sand begins to live, an even darker puzzle has emerged — a 24-year-old movie game channel, Juli Vavilova, who was last seen traveling with Durov, has vanished without a sign, reported the New York Post.
The sudden departure of Vavilova has sparked rumors on the internet, making Durov’s plot devices and theories appealing. But this is n’t fiction, this is a real-life drama playing out in the shadowy world of international law enforcement, cryptic social media trails, and high-stakes accusations.
Durov, the mysterious technology tycoon who reportedly fled Russia in 2014 after defying demands from the Kremlin to promote encrypted user data, was detained this past weekend at Le Bourget aircraft near Paris. His arrest was a result of a comprehensive investigation by European authorities into alleged crimes committed against minors, an investigation that has seen Durov accused of involvement in international drug trafficking and child molesting, made possible by his platform’s alleged weak moderation and use of cryptocurrencies, according to the New York Post.
However, as the earth watched the takedown of one of tech’s most enigmatic figures, another story began to unfold—one involving Vavilova, the young woman whose social media presence, after radiant and happy, has now become a focal point of a growing mystery.
Vavilova was last seen alongside Durov, with whom she appeared to reveal a close, but unknown, relationship. Her social media posts painted a picture of their voyage together, with stops in Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, and above. In one article, she’s seen in the passenger seats of Durov’s vehicle, their heads half-hidden by the darkness of the setting moon. In another, they stand side by side at a firing selection in Baku. The graphics, honest at first glance, have taken on a novel, menacing value as issues arise about their connection—and her part in Durov’s arrest.
Baptiste Robert, a European private researcher, has fueled these assumptions by pointing out the interested schedule of Vavilova’s content. ” It’s difficult to say if her articles directly led to his imprisonment, but if you followed her on social media, you may observe Durov’s actions”, Robert was quoted as saying. On X, Robert shared a compilation of Vavilova’s posts, drawing a chilling line between her digital breadcrumbs and Durov’s eventual capture.
The fact that Vavilova has not been heard from since Durov’s detention makes this story even more perplexing. Her family, desperate for answers, has been met with silence, their attempts to reach her going unanswered. The timing of her disappearance has spawned a number of bizarre theories, with the most recent one suggesting that she might have been used as a “honey-trap” to entice the tech billionaire into law enforcement. But like all good spy tales, this theory, too, remains shrouded in ambiguity, with no solid evidence to back it up.
Durov’s company, for its part, has denied that he was in hiding or on the run, asserting that the 39-year-old frequently traveled to Europe as a dual French citizen. The world is now questioning the true nature of their relationship and what secrets might be hiding behind her social media posts because of the eerie coincidence of Vavilova’s disappearing act and Durov’s arrest.
