In a stunning development, Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, was arrested at Bourget airport near Paris, and charged with a long list of crimes, including terrorism, money laundering, drug trafficking, pedophile offenses, and fraud.

He is detained and could face up to twenty years in prison.

Arrested In France For Failing To Moderate Content On Telegram

Durov, worth over $15.5 billion, founded Telegram, which he launched in 2013.

People familiar with the matter say an arrest warrant in France targeted him as part of a preliminary police investigation. The investigation was focused on a lack of moderators on Telegram, and police say he allowed criminal activity to go undeterred on the platform.

Failing to moderate content on a platform is a crime in France. The warrant for him was only valid on French soil, so when he landed on his jet, authorities swooped in.

Questions swirl around the arrest and, more importantly, why he stopped in the country that had issued the warrant for him.

The arrest, detailed in the Jerusalem Post, quoted a source as saying, “He made a big mistake this evening. We don’t know why… Was this flight just a stopover? In any case, he’s in custody.”

Some even question that he could be extradited to the US for similar crimes after he faces charges in France.

A Dangerous Precedent, Or Much Needed Justice?

Despite having close to 1 billion users worldwide and being valued at over 30 billion dollars, Telegram operates with a skeleton staff. According to an article published in April 2024, the platform has only 15 programmers.

And that austere staff might be the problem. The platform has not just become a central location for criminal activity, but it has also, for all intents and purposes, become the new “Dark Web,” offering a safe haven for a staggering number of fraudsters, scammers, money launderers, and drug dealers.

With so few employees, there is zero moderation, which lets criminals operate with impunity on the platform.

There are thousands of fraud channels selling identities, stolen checks, drugs, and skimmed credit cards, and it has also become a haven for pedophiles exchanging information and pictures.

But that is also part of the platform’s appeal. According to Reuters, “after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Telegram has become the main source of unfiltered—and sometimes graphic and misleading—content from both sides about the war and the politics surrounding the conflict.”

Others like Tucker Carlson support Telegram’s censor-free mission.

For now, Durov sits in a French prison awaiting his fate.

A representative from the Russian embassy in France told reporters that Durov’s team had not appealed to the embassy but that proactive “immediate” steps were being taken.

Fraud Channels Bracing and Planning For Takedown

On Telegram some of the major fraud channels are already bracing for a takedown of their channels. BigFat, which boasts over 20,000 active members, created an alternative link if its popular channel was terminated.

Should Zuckerberg Be Concerned?

Given Durov’s arrest, this could set a precedent that impacts all social media platforms, including Meta. Zuckerberg has been highly criticized for allowing criminal groups like the Yahoo Boys to carry out scams against victims without protecting users.

Maybe he should not fly to France until this all blows over.