In March, French authorities issued arrest warrants for Pavel Durov and his brother Nikolai, according to Politico, which reviewed the relevant documents.
The case was initiated due to Telegram’s refusal to cooperate with an investigation into child sexual abuse. The arrest warrants for the platform’s co-founders were issued on March 25, after they “failed to respond” to an earlier court request to identify a user of the messenger.
According to the investigation, this user coerced underage girls into sending “self-produced child pornography,” threatening to publish it on social media. The suspect later claimed to have “raped a small child.”
The document highlights Telegram’s “almost complete lack of cooperation” with French and European authorities in other cases, as well as the platform’s use by “numerous criminal groups.”
The warrants against the Durov brothers include charges of “aiding in the storage, distribution, offering, or provision of pornographic images of minors as part of an organized group.” However, there is no indication that either of the Durov brothers is directly involved in any of the illegal activities identified by the investigation.
The case summary mentions Telegram Vice President Ilya Perekopsky, although the document does not specify whether a warrant was issued for his arrest.
The French prosecutor’s office declined to comment on the case, citing its confidentiality. They stated that the investigation was initiated partly due to “offenses related to child pornography committed via Telegram.”
“At this stage, only Pavel Durov is being questioned in this case,” the prosecutor’s office added.
The current whereabouts of Nikolai Durov are unknown.
Pavel Durov’s questioning has been extended to the maximum possible 96 hours and will conclude on Wednesday, August 28, after which he may be charged or released.
Back in August, the founder of Telegram was detained at Le Bourget airport in France on the evening of August 24. The entrepreneur is being questioned as part of an investigation into crimes by an “unidentified person” under 12 articles. He himself has not been charged.
Earlier, the WSJ reported on the hacking of Pavel Durov’s iPhone by authorities in France and the UAE.