“At this stage, Pavel Durov is the only person investigated in this case,” the prosecutor’s office added. Nikolai Duro’s current whereabouts are unclear.
Telegram pushed back on any suggestion of wrongdoing on Sunday following the arrest of its CEO, saying it abides by all EU laws and that its founder has “nothing to hide”. It said neither the site nor its founder could be blamed for abusing the online service.
The Russian-born tech mogul — who holds Russian, French and Emirati citizenship, as well as citizenship of St. Kitts and Nevis, according to the filing — founded Telegram in 2013. The site has since ballooned to nearly a billion global users. An important messaging tool for political dissidents, warlords and gangsters. Telegram refuses In principle To remove any posts that violate local restrictions on speech or disclose any data about their users to any government.
The Kremlin, which has had a tumultuous relationship with Dureau, warned France on Tuesday that it would do well to have good evidence against the Telegram leader. French President Emmanuel Macron insisted on Monday that the French government had nothing to do with Durov’s arrest. Russian state media reported that Moscow wanted to request consular access.
The UAE’s diplomatic service, for its part, has requested consular access to Duro, who normally resides in Dubai. According to a person close to Durov, he has rejected the UAE’s help.
The Paris public prosecutor’s office, contacted by POLITICO, said “any foreign national detained by the police has the right to contact the consular authorities of his country” — without specifying whether Durov had made such a request.
Duro’s trial has been extended to its maximum length of 96 hours and will end on Wednesday, at which time the Telegram CEO could be charged or acquitted. Duro’s arrest led to condemnation from self-proclaimed free speech advocates from around the world, including billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk.
Telegram’s lack of content rating aligns closely with the ideals of Musk, the owner of social media platform X.
