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Pavel Durov's detention

IN BRIEF: What we know about charges faced by Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov

Pavel Durov remains in custody and is being investigated by the French national cybercrime unit and the national fraud office, according to the report

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov

© AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana

LONDON, August 26. /TASS/. Pavel Durov, co-founder of Telegram, is accused of "being passive" about cyber and financial crimes that are committed on the social media app, Reuters reported, citing a French police spokesman.

He remains in custody and is being investigated by the French national cybercrime unit and the national fraud office, according to the report.

TASS has put together what we know at this time.

Charges

- Durov, who was detained at the Le Bourget airport outside Paris on August 24, is accused of "being passive" about cyber and financial crimes that are committed on the social media app, Reuters reported, citing a French police spokesman.

- He remains in custody and is being investigated by the French national cybercrime unit and the national fraud office, according to the report.

- TF1 television reported earlier that law enforcement authorities believe the businessman is complicit in drug trafficking, crimes against children and fraud because of a lack of moderation efforts in Telegram, his refusal to cooperate with law enforcement agencies, and the option of sending cryptocurrency through the messaging app.

Macron’s statement

- French President Emmanuel Macron said Durov’s detention is not political.

- Macron said he is seeing "a lot of false information about France after Durov's detention."

- "France is more than ever committed to freedom of speech and communication, innovation and entrepreneurship," he said.

Consequences

- The Toncoin cryptocurrency, which is used for payments within Telegram, has lost more than 19% of its value since Durov’s detention, according to data from the cryptocurrency exchange Binance.

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