Telegram CEO Durov allowed to leave France, criminal probe continues

Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram, no longer has to stay in France. However, criminal activities on his messaging platform are still under investigation.

A spokesperson at the Prosecutor’s Office in Paris told Bloomberg that Durov’s restrictions to leave the country are temporarily suspended between March 15 and April 7.

“As you may have heard, I’ve returned to Dubai 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,” Pavel wrote on Telegram on Monday.

Durov was arrested in August 2024 in France at Le Bourget Airport near Paris because he failed to respond to cybercrime and financial fraud investigation requests on Telegram.

Four days after his arrest and paying €5 million in bail, Durov was released from custody but wasn’t allowed to leave the country, because the investigation was still ongoing.

After his release, Durov promised that Telegram would share the personal information of suspects who might be involved in criminal activities that violate Telegram’s Terms of Service with law enforcement agencies. He also told the media that Telegram had improved its search future to track down and remove harmful content.

“We won’t let bad actors jeopardize the integrity of our platform for almost a billion users. These measures should discourage criminals. Telegram Search is meant for finding friends and discovering news, not for promoting illegal goods,” he stated.

Since then, Telegram has shared suspects’ personal data with the law enforcement authorities on numerous occasions, including users’ phone numbers and IP addresses with the Dutch Public Prosecution Service.

Durov continues to express his gratitude for his temporary release on Telegram.

“I want to thank the investigative judges for letting this happen, as well as my lawyers and team for their relentless efforts in demonstrating that, when it comes to moderation, cooperation, and fighting crime, for years Telegram not only met but exceeded its legal obligations.”

The founder and CEO of Telegram isn’t out of the woods yet and could still potentially face criminal charges in France.