Paris, France — Telegram chief Pavel Durov was spending Thursday out on bail after four days of detention in France, banned from leaving the country as he faces a possible trial related to illegal content carried on his messaging app.
Russian-born Durov, dressed in black and wearing dark glasses, walked briskly out of the Paris court house late Wednesday into a waiting car after being charged but allowed to go free under judicial supervision.
He thanked his lawyer and was rapidly ushered into the vehicle by a burly man appearing to be a bodyguard, video posted on social media channels showed.
Durov, 39, was charged on several counts of failing to curb extremist and illegal content on the popular messaging app which now has over 900 million followers but has become increasingly controversial.
His lawyer David-Olivier Kaminski said it was “absurd” to suggest Durov could be implicated in any crime committed on the app, adding: “Telegram complies in all respects with European rules concerning digital technology.”
In Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov warned France against turning the case into “political persecution”, emphasising he is a “Russian citizen” and “we will be watching what happens next.”
Among those also voicing support for Durov is fellow tech tycoon and chief executive of X, Elon Musk, who has posted comments under the hashtag #FreePavel.
After the charges, Musk posted a meme on X of a surveillance camera attached to buildings inscribed with France’s motto, “liberty, equality, fraternity.”
Litany of charges
Durov was arrested at Le Bourget airport outside Paris late Saturday and questioned in subsequent days by investigators.
He was granted conditional release on a bail of five million euros and on the condition he must report to a police station twice a week as well as remaining in France, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement.
The charges concern alleged crimes involving an organised group, including “complicity in the administration of an online platform to enable an illicit transaction”.
This charge alone could see him jailed for up to 10 years and fined 500,000 euros if convicted.
Durov has also been charged with refusing to share documents demanded by authorities as well as “dissemination in an organised group of images of minors in child pornography” as well as drug trafficking, fraud and money laundering.
The next step will be for the case to be sent to trial.
Separately, Durov is also being investigated on suspicion of “serious acts of violence” towards one of his children while he and the boy’s mother were in Paris, a source said. She filed a criminal complaint against Durov in Switzerland last year.
The tech mogul founded Telegram as he was in the process of quitting his native Russia a decade ago following a dispute with authorities related to ownership of his first project, the Russian-language social network VKontakte.
An enigmatic figure who rarely speaks in public, Durov is a citizen of Russia, France and the United Arab Emirates, where Telegram is based.
Forbes magazine estimates his current fortune at $15.5 billion, though he proudly promotes the virtues of an ascetic life that includes ice baths and not drinking alcohol or coffee.
Special procedure
Numerous questions have been raised about the timing and circumstances of Durov’s detention, with supporters seeing him as a freedom of speech champion while his detractors paint him as a menace who wilfully allowed Telegram to get out of control.
Le Monde newspaper reported Wednesday that Durov had met President Emmanuel Macron on several occasions prior to receiving French nationality in 2021, via a special procedure reserved for those deemed to have made a special contribution to France.
A source close to the case, who asked not to be named, told AFP on Thursday that after his arrest Durov asked that French telecoms tycoon Xavier Niel, chairman and founder of the Iliad mobile operator, be informed of his arrest.
Niel is seen as being close to Macron. Contacted by AFP, Niel’s entourage declined to comment.
Another source close to the investigation said that Durov had emphasised his links to the French head of state during questioning.
Meanwhile, a UAE government official said it “prioritizes the welfare of its citizens” and was “in touch with the French authorities about this case.”