Russia Investigating Telegram Founder Durov as Part of Criminal Case, Rossiyskaya Gazeta Reports

Ada Derana

Telegram founder Pavel Durov.

Russia is investigating Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, as part of a criminal case related to the alleged “facilitation of terrorist activities,” according to state-run newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, citing the Federal Security Service (FSB).

Durov was not immediately available for comment. In recent days, Telegram has denied multiple allegations from Russian authorities claiming the platform enables criminal activity or has been compromised by Western and Ukrainian intelligence.

"The actions of the head of Telegram, P. Durov, are being investigated as part of a criminal case on the grounds of a crime under Part 1.1 of Article 205.1 (assistance to terrorist activities) of the Criminal Code of Russia," Rossiyskaya Gazeta reported in an article it said was "based on materials from the FSB of Russia".

Telegram, which says it has more than one billion active users worldwide, did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Russia’s state communications regulator has imposed restrictions on Telegram, citing what authorities describe as the company’s failure to remove extremist content. The platform remains widely popular in Russia for both public broadcasting and private messaging.

Source: Reuters



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