Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder of encrypted messaging app Telegram, has been arrested in France.
According to local report, the 39-year-old tech chief was reportedly detained after his private jet landed at Le Bourget airport on the outskirts of Paris on Saturday.
News broadcasters BFMTV and TF1 have quoted unnamed sources as saying the Russian-born entrepreneur – who became a French citizen in 2021 – was the subject of a search warrant.
Both outlets suggest the investigation was focused on a lack of moderators on Telegram and potential criminal activity by users.
Neither French police, the Interior Ministry, nor Telegram have commented on those claims.
TF1 said Durov had been travelling from Azerbaijan and was arrested at around 20:00 (18:00 GMT).
Bitcoinnews.com said Durov, the 39-year-old Franco-Russian, was accompanied by a bodyguard and a woman at the time of his arrest by the Air Transport Gendarmerie.
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Durov’s arrest followed his arrival from Azerbaijan and was executed under a French search warrant issued by the OFMIN of the French judicial police, due to his inclusion in the wanted persons file (FPR). The warrant was activated solely upon his presence on French soil.
A source close to the investigation told the news outlet, as translated by Google: “He made a blunder this evening. We don’t know why … Was this flight just a stopover? In any case, he’s in custody!”
Durov has been detained by the National Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF). French authorities accuse Telegram of facilitating crimes such as terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and fraud, among others.
A source familiar with the investigation further told the French news outlet: “On his platform, he allowed an incalculable number of offences and crimes to be committed, for which he did nothing to moderate or cooperate.”
Owing to his arrest, the price of Toncoin (TON) plummeted following the news which now trades at $5.96, down 13% from Saturday.
TON is the native coin of The Open Network, a layer-1 blockchain known for its ability to scale and process transactions rapidly,developed by the team behind Telegram
Telegram is one of the most downloaded apps in the world, with predictions it will achieve close to one billion users within a year.
