France to Address Pavel Durov’s Detention in Upcoming Statement

Key takeaways:

• Following his arrest in Paris for alleged offenses relating to the Telegram messaging app in Europe, the French authorities have prolonged Pavel Durov’s custody.
• After the postponement, an announcement regarding Durov’s detention is allegedly expected from French authorities on Monday.

Following his arrest in Paris for alleged offenses relating to the Telegram messaging app in Europe, Telegram CEO Pavel Durov’s custody has been prolonged by French authorities.

The CEO’s arrest was extended by the French court looking into Durov’s case past Sunday, August 25, according to a report published on August 26 by the local news agency AFP.

According to the report, which cited an insider with knowledge of the inquiry, this initial round of custody for questioning can last up to 96 hours. After this detention period, the judge will either decide to file charges and keep Durov in custody or release him.

After the postponement, an announcement regarding Durov’s detention is allegedly expected from French authorities on Monday, August 26. 

According to reports, French officials seized the outspoken billionaire on August 24 at an airport outside of Paris. Despite early claims that he had been detained on numerous counts about Telegram’s lack of moderation, as of August 25, there doesn’t seem to be any official confirmation that Durov had been detained or faced prosecution.

The Washington Post reports that Durov has been “detained” and that a statement will be released on Monday, August 26. Authorities in Paris have confirmed this.

The Russian embassy is said to have contacted French authorities after Durov’s arrest, asking for access to him and an explanation of the circumstances behind his incarceration.

The Washington Post reports that on August 25, an embassy representative stated on Telegram that “as of today, the French side has so far avoided cooperation on this issue.”

There are many expressions of support and pleas to “Free Durov” on social media, along with many hypotheses as to why the French government singled out the tycoon. Elon Musk, the owner of X, also voiced his opinion. Musk re-posted several encouraging remarks over several hours and included an earlier interview with Durov and the hashtag “FreeDurov.”

Regarding Durov’s imprisonment, the messaging software Telegram has released what seems to be its first formal comment. Durov’s situation is still unknown because the French government has allegedly declined to work with the Russian embassy thus far.

On August 25, at around 7:00 p.m. UTC, Telegram released an official announcement through its Telegram News channel. The business wished for a speedy resolution to the issue and declared its unwavering support for its CEO. It’s still unknown whether Durov has been arrested or what charges exactly he faces.