French authorities did not respond to requests for comment when Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of messaging app Telegram, was arrested on Aug. 24. Confidentiality of pre-trial investigations and interrogations is a key principle in the French justice system.
French television station TF1 reported that the main issues were Telegram's (lack of) moderation process and its unwillingness to cooperate with law enforcement, particularly regarding drug trafficking, money laundering and child sexual abuse content (CSAM).
But the Paris Criminal Court, which handled the investigation, probably did not expect the amount of attention and speculation it would garner. X's billionaire owner Elon Musk posted “#FreePavel” on his social networking platform. NSA whistleblower and privacy activist Edward Snowden suggested that Durov's arrest was a political decision by French President Emmanuel Macron.
Telegram has become a hot topic for both Russian authorities and Russian oppositionists, as it is the most popular social app in both Russia and Ukraine.
The high level of publicity surrounding the arrest explains why the court decided to issue a press release listing the charges against Durov. According to the document, on July 8, the Paris prosecutor's office opened a preliminary investigation into Durov in relation to combating cybercrimes.
The Cybercrime Prevention Centre (C3N) and the National Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF) are involved in the investigation. A total of 12 charges have been filed against “unnamed persons”, the traditional French judicial term currently used to refer to those responsible for Telegram.
The fees are divided into four categories.
First, the Telegram founder is accused of being complicit in storing and distributing CSAM content, facilitating drug trafficking, facilitating organized fraud and other illegal transactions. Second, the court claims that Telegram refuses to cooperate with law enforcement when it submits formal requests for information and documents. Third, Durov is accused of several charges related to Telegram's encryption features, as they have not been officially declared or recognized by French authorities. According to law professor Florence Gessel, these appear to be minor crimes. Fourth, Durov is accused of participating in a “criminal organization with the aim of committing a crime or illegal act punishable by imprisonment of more than five years” as well as money laundering.
The allegations are broad and specific, and without knowing the full extent of the investigation, it is difficult to know exactly what the basis of the allegations is.
The accusations about CSAM content, drug trafficking, and fraud are likely related to Telegram's moderation process. To be clear, Telegram currently has 950 million monthly active users but almost no moderation tools or processes. In an interview with Tucker Carlson, Durov said there are only 30 engineers working on the social app.
As for the money laundering allegations, Telegram last month introduced a digital currency called Stars that can be used to buy digital content from other users, but Stars can also be redeemed for TONCOIN, the cryptocurrency Telegram uses for various paid features.
Telegram also has a built-in cryptocurrency wallet, and Toncoins can be traded on various cryptocurrency exchanges or sent to a bank account.
Based on today's indictment, investigators suspect Telegram failed to comply with “know your customer” requirements for some of its cryptocurrency-related features, which could have facilitated money laundering.
The sixth charge on the prosecutors' list is particularly difficult to decipher: “Conspiracy – to provide, sell or make available without justification any equipment, tool, program or data designed or adapted to access or damage the operation of an automated data processing system,” prosecutor Laure Becouault wrote.
Given this list of charges, one thing is certain: Durov has been arrested as part of a criminal investigation.
His arrest is not linked to the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA) or other tech-specific regulations; platform owners cannot be arrested as a result of the enforcement of EU online governance rules. (Note: Musk's X has been under DSA investigation since December, so the tech mogul is not at risk of being detained if his jet lands on EU territory.)
Macron has also publicly stated that Durov's arrest is not a political move. In a post on X on Monday, he stressed that the French judicial system is independent from the executive branch.
“It is the responsibility of a totally independent judiciary to enforce the law,” Macron wrote. “The arrest in France of the president of Telegram was carried out as part of an ongoing judicial investigation. This is in no way a political decision. It is the judge who will decide this case.”
So what's next for Durov? French authorities can detain and question the Telegram founder for up to 96 hours, and that deadline is fast approaching. After that, a court will have to decide whether to formally indict him on some or all of the above charges.
In the latter case, the court will also decide whether the defendant should remain in custody as a precautionary measure.
Because Durov normally lives in Dubai, holds multiple passports and owns a private jet, authorities may consider him a high risk of fleeing the country and decide to detain him pending trial.