In brief
Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, is permitted to leave France as he faces serious charges linked to illicit activities on the messaging platform but expressed his commitment to ongoing investigations.
Mr. Pavel Durov, co-founder and CEO of the popular Telegram app, was granted permission to exit France temporarily after facing several criminal charges related to his messaging platform. The Paris prosecutor's office announced that Durov can travel between March 15 and April 7, after which he must return for further legal proceedings.Durov, who recently returned to Dubai, stated, “After spending several months in France due to an investigation related to the activity of criminals on Telegram, the process is ongoing, but it feels great to be home.” The 40-year-old entrepreneur was previously detained last August by French authorities, who accused him of enabling illegal transactions on his platform, with potential repercussions including a lengthy prison sentence.His charges include complicity in child sexual abuse material distribution, drug trafficking, fraud, and not cooperating with law enforcement. Durov has voiced that he should not be held accountable for user-generated content and has made efforts to enhance content moderation on Telegram since the legal troubles began.
