Russia on Wednesday (July 29, 2026) announced that it was seeking the arrest of Pavel Durov, founder and CEO of messaging platform Telegram, accusing him of “complicity in terrorism” and launching international search proceedings for the Russian-born who is currently living in Dubai.

The move comes just two months before the first election to the State Duma, the Lower House of Russian Parliament, since its invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and the subsequent ongoing war. Many consider the electoral period to be a source of unexpected public mobilisation over accumulated dissatisfaction, which could well be the case after more than four years of war. Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB) has accused Telegram of enabling Ukrainian groups to recruit Russians for acts of sabotage within the country. If arrested and convicted, Mr. Durov could be imprisoned for life.

What are the charges against Mr. Durov? 

The international wanted notice against Mr. Durov comes after the FSB said that Telegram had failed to remove “numerous channels, chats, and bots” allegedly used by “Ukrainian intelligence agencies and terrorist and extremist organisations” to prepare and coordinate acts of “sabotage and terrorism, mass murder, and cyber fraud” in Russia. Mr. Durov has been charged as part of an ongoing criminal investigation under Article 205.1 of the Russian Criminal Code (Facilitating Terrorist Activities), according to Russia’s state media TASS. Article 205.1 establishes liability for inciting, recruiting, or otherwise involving a person in the commission of at least one terrorist offense.

The FSB noted that, since 2022, 1,53,000 crimes committed using Telegram had been recorded in Russia, including the terrorist attack at Crocus City Hall in Moscow and the murders of nine high-ranking defence officials. It also said that more than 1,50,000 requests demanding the removal of illegal content were sent to Telegram in the last few years, but these were ignored.

What is the digital atmosphere in Russia? 

Under President Vladimir Putin, Russia has maintained a tight grip on Internet access with major platforms like Facebook and YouTube being banned and messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Telegram being restricted.

However, Telegram remains one of the main communication platforms in Russia over unencrypted state-backed alternatives which critics flag as a possible surveillance tool.

After the war began in 2022, Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of using social media to organise acts of sabotage in violation of territorial sovereignty, allegations denied by both countries. Despite the allegations and restrictions, Russian officials continue to use Telegram and Kremlin’s page in the platform had nearly 3 lakh followers as of Wednesday (July 29, 2026). 

What are other legal issues faced by Mr. Durov? 

As the CEO of a platform that allows group chats with as many as 2 lakh people with provisions for broadcasting messages that could easily be exploited, Mr. Durov has come under the scrutiny of several law enforcement agencies. While he cannot be held directly accountable for contents in the platform, the lack of content moderation in Telegram enabling potential use of the platform in money laundering, drug trafficking, and circulation of sexual exploitation materials has been called out in several countries. Many governments have also criticised Telegram for not sharing information about suspected bad actors when required by law. 

In August 2024, French authorities arrested Mr. Durov over allegations of his platform being used for illegal activities, but he was released on bail after questioning. Mr. Putin had criticised the action at that time, calling out the “selective” nature of French authorities, and noting that several countries, including Russia, had raised concerns about bad actors using Telegram. “All platforms are kind of guilty of this”, Mr. Putin had said then, highlighting that platforms are not liable for actions of users.

Mr. Durov has returned to Dubai after French authorities lifted a travel ban imposed on him following the arrest. But after the Russian move seeking his arrest, French authorities have clarified that Mr. Durov remains under formal investigation and is facing an array of potential charges. 

What lies forward for Mr. Durov? 

Mr. Durov has always treaded a fine line, blurring the margins between freedom of expression and law enforcement. While the revered figure of free-speech activists, who has based his platform on his own saying that “Privacy, ultimately, is more important than our fear of bad things happening”, has not responded to the charges, shortly after they were announced, Telegram’s official X handle posted an image of Mr. Durov with an offensive gesture of disrespect. 

While Mr. Durov is less likely to face any prosecution as of now, Russian lawyers have not ruled out the possibility of him being arrested in absentia on Russian territory, which would enable law enforcement agencies to move for an extradition. Russia has a history of crackdown on political dissidents, the likes of late Alexei Navalny.

State-aligned companies in Russia currently hold major stakes in Mr. Durov’s initial social media venture, Vkonakte, and the state would be interested in doing the same for the popular messaging platform as well ahead of sensitive elections. 

Published – July 30, 2026 09:24 am IST

Paris:

The investigation into Telegram boss Pavel Durov who has fired a warning shot to global tech titans was started by a small cybercrime unit within the Paris prosecutor’s office, led by 38-year-old Johanna Brousse.

The arrest of Durov, 39, last Saturday marks a significant shift in how some global authorities may seek to deal with tech chiefs reluctant to police illegal content on their platforms.

The arrest signalled the mettle of the J3 cybercrime unit, but the true test of its ambitions will be whether Brousse can secure a conviction based on a largely untested legal argument, lawyers said.

In an unprecedented move against a major tech CEO, prosecutors argued that Durov bears responsibility for the alleged illegality on his platform, placing him under formal investigation on organized crime charges. He is suspected of complicity in running an online platform that allows the posting of child sex abuse images, drug trafficking and fraud. 

Durov’s lawyer said on Thursday it was “absurd” for him to be held responsible and that the app abided by European laws, echoing an earlier statement by Telegram itself.

Being placed under formal investigation in France does not imply guilt or necessarily lead to trial, but indicates judges consider there is enough evidence to proceed with the probe. Investigations can last years before being sent to trial or dropped. Durov is out on bail but barred from leaving France.

Brousse’s unit began investigating Durov earlier this year after seeing his app being used for countless alleged crimes, and growing frustrated by the “almost total lack of response from Telegram to judicial requests”, Paris Prosecutor Laure Beccuau said on Wednesday.

Brousse declined to comment.

In an interview with the newspaper Liberation in January, Brousse said her office was overseeing a growing number of probes involving Telegram and rival messaging app Discord, adding that tackling crime on them was “one of my battles”. 

Jason Citron, Discord’s CEO, did not respond to a request for comment. 

Brousse’s J3 cybercrime unit is France’s most important, with a licence to prosecute nationwide. But it also is small, with just five prosecutors, well below the 55-60 cybercrime prosecutors in Switzerland, a 2022 parliamentary report found. With limited resources, they “prioritize the most serious crimes”, Brousse told Le Figaro last year.

Brousse said in a 2022 podcast appearance she wanted to be tough “so cybercriminals believe that if they attack France, they will be judged and punished very severely”.

“We want people to be prosecuted, either in their country … or in France through arrest warrants,” she said.

Her office was used to “extremely sensitive cases”, she added. “Sometimes, legal and geopolitical issues intersect.”

Patrick Perrot, who coordinates AI-assisted probes at the French gendarmerie and advises the Interior Ministry’s cyber command unit, said the J3 had been innovative in seeking to prosecute cases that set an international precedent. 

“I think it shows that you can’t do whatever you want with these platforms,” he told Reuters. “It’s a real question for the future, because these platforms won’t stop multiplying, so the challenge of regulation is essential.”

TOUGH LEGAL GROUND?

Brousse has led the J3 since 2020, which has given her oversight of one of the most important – and controversial – French cybercrime cases ever. 

In late 2020, the J3 took charge of the probe into Sky ECC, which alongside Encrochat was one of the main encrypted communications services used by gangsters to buy drugs and weapons, or murder rivals. A few years earlier, French, Dutch and Belgian police had hacked into their servers, which were housed in northern France, giving French prosecutors jurisdiction over many of the resulting probes. 

There have been more than 6,500 arrests since the takedown of Encrochat in 2020, according to Europol, with the legality of the intercepts challenged in appeals courts across Europe.

Paul Krusky, the Canadian Encrochat boss, was extradited in February from the Dominican Republic to France, where he now awaits trial. Lawyers for Sky ECC’s Jean-François Eap are contesting his French arrest warrant.

Stephane Bonifassi, Eap’s lawyer, said his client was innocent, adding that “Sky ECC was not conceived as a tool for criminals, nor commercialized as such”.

Krusky’s lawyer, Antoine Vey, said his client was innocent.

“The service set up by Paul Krusky, like other services that have enjoyed global success, was only intended to protect the privacy and freedom of exchange of its users, and in no case to support criminal activities,” Vey said in a statement.

Two other French lawyers who have worked on Sky ECC and Encrochat cases told Reuters that these earlier probes gave prosecutors the ambition – and a blueprint – to target Durov.

Robin Binsard, who has fought Encrochat cases at France’s top court, said prosecutors would need to prove that Durov knew and approved of the criminality on the app, calling their argument “totally questionable”.

The fact that Telegram didn’t comply with law enforcement requests “does not automatically make one an accomplice to a criminal project”, he added.

Binsard said it was clear “France is pursuing encrypted messaging providers”, and that other operators of such apps, such as Signal, “should be concerned about whether or not they are in compliance with French regulations. Because the message is clear if they are not, legal action will take place”.

Signal did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

A source at the Paris prosecutor’s office said the Sky ECC probe had no links to the Telegram investigation.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)