Telegram Responds to Founder and CEO Pavel Durov’s Arrest in France

Telegram has hit back against the stunning arrest of its CEO and founder, Pavel Durov, claiming he has “nothing to hide” in a statement posted to the messaging platform’s official news channel.

“Telegram abides by EU laws, including the Digital Services Act—its moderation is within industry standards and constantly improving,” it said on Sunday.

Durov was arrested in France late Saturday after arriving from Azerbaijan on his private jet at Le Bourget airport outside Paris.

The detention of Durov, has been extended beyond Sunday night by the investigating magistrate handling the case, The Guardian reported. He can reportedly be held for questioning for up to a maximum of 96 hours.

At the conclusion of this detention period, the judge may choose to release him, press charges, or remand him into further custody.

France’s National Anti-Fraud Office reportedly arrested Durov over various charges that are said to be tied to alleged illegal conduct by Telegram users that the service allegedly refused to moderate.

“Telegram’s CEO Pavel Durov has nothing to hide and travels frequently in Europe,” the messaging platform said in its response. “It is absurd to claim that a platform or its owner are responsible for abuse of that platform.”

It said almost a billion global users regularly used Telegram as a means of communication and as a “vital” source of information.

“We’re awaiting a prompt resolution of this situation.”

The price of Toncoin (TON)—the token of the Telegram-affiliated The Open Network—fell sharply following Durov’s arrest.

TON is down about 14% from its Saturday opening price of $6.70 to $5.79 after recovering from a weekend low of $5.25, CoinGecko data shows.

This is a developing story and will be updated accordingly.