Telegram -founder Pavel Durov has been allowed to temporarily leave France, where he is indicted for several violations associated with allegedly enabling organized crime, sources of AFP say.
Durov, now 40, was sensationally detained in Le Bourget Airport outside Paris in August 2024 and accused of a litany of violations related to the popular messaging app he founded.
It was the first time the founder of a social media company was arrested over content on his platform. With more than 900 million active users, telegram is one of the best messaging apps in the world.
After days of interrogation after his arrest, he was indicted for several counts for not limiting extremist and terror content and releasing at 5 million euros ($ 5.6 million) bail.
He had been forbidden to leave the country, but on Saturday flew to Dubai, sources said.
“He left France this morning,” a knowledgeable source told AFP, adding that Durov was back with the authorities’ permission.
Another source said Durov, one of the world’s most influential tech executives, was away from Le Bourget Airport outside Paris for Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, where his company is based.
According to a third source, an investigative judge had authorized the entrepreneur to leave France for “several weeks.”
The Russian-born Durov has Russian, French and the United Arab Emirates passport. An enigmatic figure that rarely speaks publicly, he is a multi-billionaire fond of ascetic practice.
A spokesman for telegram refused to comment when AFP reached.
Durov’s lawyers were not immediately available for comment.
The investigating judge accepted Durov’s request to change the conditions of his supervision several days ago, one of the sources said.
Durov, who was a self -proclaimed libertarian, advanced online confidentiality. Moscow tried to block telegram in 2018, but abandoned these endeavors two years later.
He initially criticized his arrest, but has since announced steps that appear to bow to Paris’ demands.
Excerpt from Durov’s questioning in December through an interpreter, seen by AFP, showed that he originally accused the French authorities of not warning telegram of alleged criminal activity.
But Durov nevertheless admitted that “it was while I was kept in custody that I realized the seriousness of all the allegations.”
Investigators have confronted Durov with more than a dozen specific cases ranging from abuse to children to drug trafficking, fraud, weapon sales and hiring Hitmen.
President Emmanuel Macron has defended a decision to give French nationality to Durov, adding that it was a “strategy” of those who “shine in the world.”
According to a source close to the investigation, Durov had emphasized his connections to the French head of state during interrogation.
He has received support from colleague Tech Tycoon and CEO of X, Elon Musk, who published comments under the hashtag #freepavel.
The Kremlin has warned France against turning the case against Durov “to political persecution.”
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.
By arresting Durov, French authorities dive the head in a cracked debate on freedom of expression online.
Some said Durov should not be held responsible for the abuse of the platform, while others have pointed out that Durov may well have brought control of themselves.