French authorities have detained Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder of the messaging app Telegram, at Bourget Airport outside Paris. The detention occurred on Saturday evening when Durov arrived on a flight from Azerbaijan, according to reports from CNN affiliate BFMTV.
Durov, 39, was taken into custody by officers from France’s anti-fraud office, which is attached to French customs. The arrest was made under a French warrant issued due to concerns over the lack of moderation on Telegram, leading to its use for illicit activities, including money laundering, drug trafficking, and the sharing of pedophilic content, as reported by BFMTV.
The Telegram founder had reportedly not traveled regularly to France and Europe since the arrest warrant was issued. CNN has reached out to the French prosecutor’s office for further comments.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
