Telegram founder Pavel Durov released from prison – JURIST

Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of Telegram, was released from custody on Wednesday after spending four days in pre-trial detention. Durov was arrested by French authorities at Le Bourget airport outside Paris on Saturday. His arrest was based on allegations related to violations of the law relating to drug trafficking, sexual content involving children, promoting terrorism and cyberbullying, which were attributed to inadequate moderation practices at Telegram.

French prosecutors confirmed that Durov's detention was authorized by an investigating judge, who authorized pre-trial detention until Wednesday, August 28. The investigation focuses on Telegram's alleged non-compliance with French regulations, particularly related to the platform's content moderation.

In his speech on the case on Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that Durov's arrest had no political motives but was part of an ongoing judicial investigation.

Telegram posted support for its president and CEO on Sunday, claiming that Durov has “nothing to hide” and that the messaging platform complies with EU laws, including the Digital Services Act. The platform's moderation is “within industry standards and is constantly being improved,” the post said, refuting accusations by French authorities that Telegram does not have sufficient moderation standards.

Durov, originally from Russia, fled the country after refusing to comply with government demands to shut down opposition political groups on his former social network VKontakte (VK) and hand over user data to Russian authorities. In 2013, he and his brother Nikolai Durov launched Telegram.