{"id":2249,"date":"2024-08-25T10:28:58","date_gmt":"2024-08-25T10:28:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beadysword.com.ng\/blog\/?p=2249"},"modified":"2024-08-25T10:29:04","modified_gmt":"2024-08-25T10:29:04","slug":"telegram-ceo-pavel-durov-arrested-in-france-for-offences-related-to-his-messaging-app","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beadysword.com.ng\/blog\/2024\/08\/25\/telegram-ceo-pavel-durov-arrested-in-france-for-offences-related-to-his-messaging-app\/","title":{"rendered":"Telegram CEO Pavel Durov Arrested In France For Offences Related To His Messaging App."},"content":{"rendered":"
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Pavel Durov, the billionaire founder and CEO of Telegram, was reportedly detained at Bourget Airport near Paris on Saturday evening, according to French news outlets TF1 and BFM TV.<\/p>\n

Durov, who was travelling on his private jet from Azerbaijan, was arrested under a French warrant related to a preliminary police investigation into Telegram\u2019s alleged role in facilitating criminal activities, reports Reuters.<\/p>\n

Telegram did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. The French Interior Ministry and police had no comment.<\/p>\n

TF1 said Durov had been travelling from Azerbaijan and was arrested at around 20:00 (18:00 GMT).<\/p>\n

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In separate news, Bitcoinnews.com said Durov, the 39-year-old Franco-Russian, was accompanied by a bodyguard and a woman at the time of his arrest by the Air Transport Gendarmerie.<\/p>\n

Durov\u2019s arrest followed his arrival from Azerbaijan and was executed under a French search warrant issued by the OFMIN of the French judicial police, due to his inclusion in the wanted persons file (FPR). The warrant was activated solely upon his presence on French soil. A source close to the investigation told the news outlet, as translated by Google:<\/p>\n

\u201cHe made a blunder this evening. We don\u2019t know why \u2026 Was this flight just a stopover? In any case, he\u2019s in custody!\u201d<\/p>\n

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Durov has been detained by the National Anti-Fraud Office (ONAF). French authorities accuse Telegram of facilitating crimes such as terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and fraud, among others. A source familiar with the investigation further told the French news outlet:<\/p>\n

\u201cOn his platform, he allowed an incalculable number of offences and crimes to be committed, for which he did nothing to moderate or cooperate,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n

The price of toncoin (TON) plummeted following the news. As of writing, TON is trading at $5.96, down 13% from earlier today.<\/p>\n

He posted, \u201cPavel Durov left Russia when the government tried to control his social media company, Telegram. But in the end, it wasn\u2019t Putin who arrested him for allowing the public to exercise free speech.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a Western country, a Biden administration ally and enthusiastic NATO member, that locked him away.<\/p>\n

\u201cPavel Durov sits in a French jail tonight, a living warning to any platform owner who refuses to censor the truth at the behest of governments and intel agencies. Darkness is descending fast on the formerly free world.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Atomic Wallet on its website linked the TON ownership to the Durov brothers, an August 16, 2024 piece titled, \u201cWhat is Toncoin (TON)\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIn 2018, the Durov brothers, Nickolai and Pavel, aimed for an effective blockchain to support the massive users on Telegram. Along these lines, they launched a GRAM project after a total sum of $1.7 billion (about $5 per person in the US) was raised through a private ICO.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the money had been raised, the main components of the blockchain, together with the white paper, were developed. In 2019, the Ton network, previously known as Gram, was launched as a test in preparation for the main launch,\u201d it wrote.<\/p>\n

Telegram, based in Dubai, was founded by Russian-born Durov, who left Russia in 2014 after he refused to comply with demands to shut down opposition communities on his VK social media platform, which he sold.<\/p>\n

Durov, who Forbes estimates to have a fortune of $15.5 billion, said some governments had sought to pressure him, but the app, which now has 900 million active users, should remain a \u201cneutral platform\u201d and not a \u201cplayer in\u00a0geopolitics.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n