Pavel Durov met with representatives of French counterintelligence in Dubai and maintained contact with them, he said during interrogation. The Telegram messenger he owns refused to cooperate with the authorities, but always noted that it complies with the laws in force in Europe, the Libération newspaper reports, citing its own source.
Image source: Pavel Durov
The head of the platform was in contact with representatives of the French General Directorate of Internal Security (DGSI), which performs counterintelligence functions in France. He stated that “it would be inappropriate for him to disclose information that constitutes a military secret,” although it is not clear what he was talking about. Pavel Durov “as part of the fight against terrorism, opened an official communication channel with DGSI with a hotline and a special email address,” which bore fruit: several terrorist attacks were prevented.
It is also reported that after the arrest, the head of Telegram provided the French authorities with a phone with an access code to it and expressed his readiness to cooperate with law enforcement agencies.
Let us recall that the reason for Durov’s arrest was that the administration of the messenger refused to cooperate with the authorities of the European Union, and its moderation policy aroused criticism from the regional authorities; Paris was also disappointed by the platform’s refusal to cooperate specifically with French authorities.
Durov was charged with six counts, including non-cooperation. The most serious count is complicity in the administration of an online platform for making illegal transactions. For this, Pavel faces a penalty of up to ten years in prison and a fine of up to €500 thousand.