Telegram boss free but charged and held in France

Telegram chief Pavel Durov was out on bail yesterday after four days of detention in France. However, he has been banned from leaving the country as he faces a possible trial related to illegal content carried on his messaging app.

Russian-born Durov, dressed in black and wearing dark glasses, walked briskly out of the Paris court house late Wednesday into a waiting car after being charged but allowed to go free under judicial supervision.

Durov, 39, was charged on several counts of failing to curb extremist and illegal content on the popular messaging app which now has over 900 million followers but has become increasingly controversial.

His lawyer David-Olivier Kaminski said it was “absurd” to suggest Durov could be implicated in any crime committed on the app.

Durov was arrested at Le Bourget airport outside Paris late Saturday and questioned in subsequent days by investigators.

The charges concern alleged crimes involving an organised group, including “complicity in the administration of an online platform to enable an illicit transaction”.

This charge alone could see him jailed for up to 10 years and fined 500,000 euros if convicted.

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