French authorities issued arrest warrants for Telegram CEO Pavel Durov and his co-founder brother Nikolai in March, months earlier than previously known, over Telegram's refusal to assist with a French police inquiry into child sexual abuse.
Pavel Durov, the 39-year-old Russian billionaire entrepreneur who holds a French passport and is the founder and CEO of Telegram, was arrested on Saturday evening, August 24, at Le Bourget airport in Paris and faces 12 charges from French authorities, including child pornography, drug trafficking, money laundering, and withholding key information from investigators.
This was reported by Politico, which got acquainted with the French administrative document.
The document reveals that the French undercover investigation into Telegram is more extensive and commenced months earlier than previously reported. The case centers on Telegram's refusal to assist with a French police inquiry into child sexual abuse.
Warrants for Pavel and his brother Nikolai were issued on March 25 over charges including “complicity in possessing, distributing, offering or making available pornographic images of minors, in an organized group.”
The document cited the use of the platform by "numerous criminal groups." However, there is no indication that either of the Durov brothers was directly involved in any of the illegal activities uncovered by the investigation.
The prosecutor's office declined to comment on the warrants issued for both Durov brothers due to the confidential nature of the investigation. However, they did note that "the various offenses committed via Telegram, and which warranted the opening of an investigation by the cybercrime unit of the Paris public prosecutor's office, include child pornography offenses (among others)."
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