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 France extends arrest of Telegram founder, Macron denies political motives

On Tuesday, French authorities extended until tomorrow Wednesday the detention of Telegram app founder Pavel Durov, arrested at Paris airport as part of an investigation into organized crime, while President Emmanuel Macron denied any hypothesis. the political context of his arrest.

According to French judicial authorities, Durov failed to take measures to limit the misuse of the messaging app by subscribers, including by not adopting a mechanism to limit extremist content and by cooperating with investigators.

A source familiar with the case said that Durov's detention was extended until Wednesday, for a total of 96 hours, because the suspected actions fall within the scope of organized crime.

Arrest Durov

The founder of Telegram, who was accompanied by his bodyguard and assistant, was arrested on Saturday at Bourges airport, north of Paris.

Durov, who has lived in Dubai for years and has Emirati nationality, arrived in Paris from Baku, the Azerbaijani capital.

The 39-year-old Franco-Russian billionaire was placed in pre-trial detention as part of a judicial investigation opened, following a preliminary inquiry, by the National Judicial Authority for the Fight against Organized Crime (JONALCO), on July 8, relating to 12 crimes, according to a press release from the Paris public prosecutor, Laure Picot.

The charges include refusing to provide information necessary for legally authorized interceptions of correspondence, complicity in crimes and organized crime on the platform (drug trafficking, child pornography, fraud, and money laundering within an organized group), and providing encryption services to ensure confidentiality without reporting. ensure the compliance of the services with the law.

The investigating judges in charge of this case have instructed the Center for the Fight against Digital Crime and the National Anti-Fraud Office to conduct the investigations.

A source close to the case indicated that investigators questioned his bodyguard and his assistant and then released them.

"This is not a political decision"

While the arrest of the founder of Telegram on French soil has sparked many international reactions, Macron stressed that this measure "was taken as part of an ongoing judicial investigation, and does not constitute a political decision", emphasizing that the matter belongs to the judges.

Macron denounced what he called "fake news" affecting France because of the arrest, stressing that his country "is committed to the greatest freedom of expression, communication and innovation, and will remain so."

He added: "In a country where the law prevails, on social networks and in real life, freedoms are exercised within a framework determined by the law to protect citizens and respect their fundamental rights," noting that it is up to everyone to ensure compliance with the law. the independent judiciary.

The Kremlin spokesman announced that Moscow had not received any information from France on the reasons for Durov's arrest, adding: "We do not know concretely what charges are brought against him."

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Russian embassy in Paris would begin work immediately, as is customary when Russian citizens are detained abroad.

As for the United Arab Emirates, they confirmed that they were following the case of citizen Durov, arrested in France.

Telegram responds

For its part, the Telegram application emphasizes that Durov "has nothing to hide and he travels a lot in Europe without problems."

"It is illogical to claim that a platform or its owner is responsible for its misuse," it said.

The Telegram application presents itself as a "neutral" alternative to American platforms criticized for their commercial exploitation of users' personal data.

But its detractors accuse it of often publishing illegal content, ranging from sexually explicit images to disinformation and drug-related services.

These events come in light of Durov's long history of confrontation with government authorities since he left Russia in 2014 after refusing to comply with the Russian government's demands regarding his former platform, "VK."