Russia warns France against trying to 'intimidate' detained Telegram founder Pavel Durov
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has suggested the French government is trying to intimidate Russian-born Pavel Durov, the CEO of messaging app Telegram, who was arrested outside of Paris on Saturday for 12 alleged crimes related to drug trafficking, the sale of child sexual abuse material and fraud on the messaging platform. Durov will be held in police custody in Paris for a further 48 hours, prosecutors said on Tuesday.
The Kremlin said Tuesday that France had levelled "very serious" charges against Telegram CEO Pavel Durov and warned Paris against trying to intimidate him, after the tech tycoon was arrested at a Paris airport last week.
French prosecutors accuse the 39-year-old billionaire of failing to curb the spread of illegal content on Telegram – charges his company denies. French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday denied any political link to the arrest.
Read moreFree speech and ‘homeland’: Russia's ‘opportunistic’ response to Telegram boss Durov’s arrest
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