Billionaire Telegram CEO Released on €5M Bail, Not Allowed to Leave France

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Last updated:

August 29, 2024 02:25 EDT

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The beleaguered Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, was granted bail on Wednesday, upon a condition to pay €5 million ($5.56 million). He is also placed under judicial supervision with mandatory obligation to sign with the police twice a week.

The Russian-born billionaire tech mogul was detained at a French airport on Saturday, and later charged for 12 potential complicity.

Per a statement from Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau, “Pavel Durov was indicted and placed under judicial supervision.” Further, he is also banned from travelling outside France until further notice.

The indictment noted some of the serious crimes including complicity in child pornography, trafficking and money laundering, and organized crimes. He is also charged for his unresponsiveness to lawful requests and failure to register cryptography services.

“Telegram’s almost total failure to respond to judicial requests was brought to the attention of the cybercrime section of JUNALCO” of the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office, the translated test read.

This led the JUNALCO to open an investigation into the possible criminal responsibility of the managers of Telegram, it added.

Durov, after his arrest, was placed in custody for up to 96 hours, the maximum time an offender can be kept under French law.

Telegram CEO’s Arrest Upends Other Governments, Paris, Moscow, Abu Dhabi

Pavel Durov’s arrest have stirred a public outcry in Paris, Moscow and Abu Dhabi governments. For instance, though Durov distances himself from Moscow, Telegram has become a key platform used by the Russian military for battlefield communications.

A Russian military blogger channel noted that they “practically detained the head of communication of the Russian army.” As a result, alarmed Russian policy makers are alco calling for Durov’s release.

Further, the United Arab Emirates announced that it had asked the French authorities to allow consular access to Durov. The Telegram head is an Emirati citizen.

“The UAE is closely following the case of its citizen Pavel Durov, founder of Telegram, who was arrested by the French authorities in Paris–Le Bourget Airport, emphasizing that the UAE has submitted a request to the Government of the French Republic to provide him with all the necessary consular services in an urgent manner,” the foreign ministry of Abu Dhabi, wrote on Monday.

Besides, his arrest ignited a strong debate regarding online free speech and tech regulations.