Telegram founder Pavel Durov: A year after being arrested by French police, he still needs to return to France every two weeks, and there is still no appeal date for the case.

On August 25, Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, tweeted that "A year ago, I was detained by the French police for 4 days, just because some people I had never heard of used Telegram to coordinate crime. Arresting the CEO of a large platform for the actions of users is not only unprecedented but also utterly absurd legally and logically. A year later, the 'criminal investigation' launched against me is still struggling to find any evidence of wrongdoing on my part or that of Telegram. Our content moderation practices are in line with industry standards, and Telegram has consistently responded to all legally binding requests from France. Ironically, I was arrested precisely because of the French police's own mistakes: prior to August 2024, they ignored French and EU laws and never sent any inquiries to Telegram through the prescribed legal channels. A year after this bizarre arrest, I still have to return to France every 14 days, yet there has been no appeal date set. So far, the only outcome of my arrest is the severe damage to France's image as a free country. One thing is certain: we will continue to fight—and we will win."