Pavel Durov, 39, the founder and CEO of Telegram, the most popular global communication software in the cryptocurrency market, was arrested at Le Bourget Airport in France at around 8 a.m. on August 24. It is reported that Durov, a French-Russian, was arrested by the French Air Transport Gendarmerie (GTA) when he got off a private plane, and was later detained by the French National Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF) and is expected to be interrogated by an investigating judge.
According to the source, Durov was put on the wanted list minutes before getting off the plane. His arrest was due to a French search warrant issued by the French National Judicial Police for Combating Child Sexual Exploitation (OFMIN) based on a preliminary investigation. The search warrant is only valid in France, so the police arrested Durov after he arrived in France from Azerbaijan.
The warrant for Durov's arrest is only valid when he sets foot on French territory, so he usually only travels to countries that can avoid surveillance, such as the United Arab Emirates, former Soviet republics and South America, just to avoid being detained in this way. An investigator said: "Durov made a big mistake, but we don't know why... Maybe it was just a stopover. In any case, he is now in custody."
After Durov was arrested, he may face multiple charges because the Telegram platform with 900 million users involves terrorism, drug trafficking, conspiracy, fraud, money laundering and involvement in child abuse. In addition, the platform lacks content review, uses disposable numbers and cryptocurrencies, and Durov allowed countless violations and crimes to occur without taking any measures to ease or cooperate, which makes him an "accomplice" to these crimes.
French authorities believe that given Durov's extensive resources and high flight risk, he will almost certainly be detained in pretrial detention and is unlikely to be released under judicial supervision. Durov will soon appear in court as a French citizen and face more than 20 years in prison if convicted of multiple serious charges.
It is understood that Telegram is headquartered in Dubai. This platform has a great influence in Russia, Ukraine and other former Soviet countries. Especially during the Russo-Ukrainian war, it became the main channel for information dissemination. Durov's personal wealth is estimated to be 15.5 billion US dollars. He once emphasized that Telegram should remain "neutral" and should not intervene in geopolitical disputes.
It is worth mentioning that the US government has tried to undermine Telegram's security in order to take control of the platform and monitor the users of the application. Every time Durov enters the United States, he is questioned by the FBI and other agencies, who try to understand which open source libraries are integrated into the Telegram client application.
Even more shocking, Durov revealed that U.S. officials had tried to convince his engineers to integrate certain open source tools into Telegram’s code that appeared harmless but, in Durov’s opinion, might actually be backdoors, secret access features built into the application that would allow government agencies or other actors to crack encrypted messages and spy on user activity.
In fact, Durov left Russia and went into exile as early as 2014 because he refused to cooperate with the Russian government in shutting down opposition accounts. Now, he is once again in conflict with the government over the operation of Telegram. His future fate is still pending the final decision of the French court.
The news of Durov's arrest sent shockwaves through the crypto community, causing a sharp drop in the price of Telegram's native cryptocurrency, TON. Within an hour of the news breaking, TON's price plunged 16%, reflecting investor concerns about the future of Telegram and its related projects. Durov's legal troubles and uncertainty about a potential crackdown on Telegram have raised concerns about increased regulatory scrutiny and instability.
In response, TON (The Open Network), a blockchain network backed by Telegram, immediately issued a statement: "Regarding the recent news about Telegram founder Pavel Durov, we would like to assure you that the TON community remains strong and operating normally."
As the news of Durov's arrest gradually fermented, not only the TON-related ecosystem, but all cryptocurrency communities began to launch the slogan "Free Durov". This call quickly spread on the X platform. Supporters expressed their support for Durov by forwarding and supporting him, calling for attention to the decentralized concept behind this incident and the importance of global information freedom. The aesthetic "freedom" of cryptocurrency was also reflected.
In addition, Tesla CEO Musk has also posted several articles to support Durov. He believes that the French government's move is absurd and sarcastically said: "In Europe in 2030, you will be executed for liking a meme." Musk emphasized the importance of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution to protect freedom of speech, and satirized the absurdity of technology innovators being blamed for illegal users of technology. Being accused of their inventions being used for illegal activities just because they are unwilling to install government backdoors in the system will hinder the development of the global network and is extremely controversial.
Overall, Durov's arrest shows France is taking a tough stance on digital privacy and cracking down on platforms deemed to facilitate criminal activity. The case has international implications because it highlights the tension between free speech and cracking down on illegal online activity.
The crackdown is likely to reverberate around the world, pressuring other countries to impose stricter regulations on encrypted messaging apps like Telegram. The unfolding legal battle will be closely watched not only for its impact on Durov and Telegram, but also for its broader implications for digital privacy and security around the world.
