NICE, France (KAP) - The founder and CEO of messaging service Telegram has been detained at a Paris airport on an arrest warrant alleging his platform was used for money laundering, drug trafficking and other crimes, French media reported Sunday.
Pavel Durov, a dual citizen of France and Russia, was detained on Saturday evening at Paris-Le Bourget airport after landing in France from Azerbaijan, according to TV stations LCI and TF1.
Investigators from the National Anti-Fraud Office of the French Customs Service have told 39-year-old Durov that he will be placed in police custody, television stations reported.
Durov's representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.
French prosecutors declined to comment on Durov's arrest, in accordance with regulations during the ongoing investigation, when contacted by the Associated Press on Sunday.
French media reported that the arrest warrant for Durov was issued by France at the request of a special unit of the Interior Ministry in charge of investigating crimes against minors. These include sexual exploitation on the internet, such as possession and distribution of content containing child sexual abuse and solicitation for sexual purposes.
apnews.com /photo: wikipedia/gnews.cz-jav_07
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