Telegram CEO Durov on 2024 arrest: ‘no other tech leader targeted like this’
Telegram founder Pavel Durov said his arrest by French authorities in August 2024 was an unprecedented overreach of power, unlike anything seen against any other tech leader.
“I arrived in France last year in August for a short two-day trip, and I see a dozen armed policemen asking me to follow them. They read me a list of something like 15 serious crimes that I was accused of, which was mind-boggling. At first, I thought there must be some mistake. Then I realised they’re being serious and they’re accusing me of all possible crimes that the users of Telegram have allegedly committed, and they think I should be responsible’’, he said, speaking on the Lex Fridman Podcast.
