- Telegram founder Pavel Durov’s criminal case in France is suspended for at least a year, leaving him stuck in the country while Telegram faces leadership uncertainty.
- French authorities arrested Durov over Telegram’s alleged obstruction of 2,500 criminal cases, including fraud and terrorism.
- Meanwhile, Tornado Cash developer Alexey Pertsev was freed under electronic monitoring as he appealed his 64-month sentence.
Telegram founder Pavel Durov’s criminal case in France will be suspended for a year.
Maylis de Roeck, a spokesperson for the French prosecutor’s office, told WIRED that discussions about a potential settlement agreement are “premature” despite more than five months since Durov’s arrest in Paris.
As Durov’s trial won’t begin for another year, it looks like the Telegram founder will spend more time in France while his company faces uncertainty over its leadership.
French authorities arrested Durov after determining that Telegram’s lack of compliance with police requests had obstructed roughly 2,500 cases between 2013 and 2024 across various departments. Prosecutors had already investigated him for failing to prevent illegal activities on the platform, including fraud, drug trafficking, child sexual abuse material (CSAM), organised crime and terrorism.
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Durov was released on bail for 5 million euros (AU$8.26M). He has to check in with French police commissaries weekly.
In December 2024, he informed French authorities that Telegram has cooperated with law enforcement, providing data on approximately 10,000 users to officials worldwide. Pavel has also said his goal with Telegram was to stop criminals from abusing his app.
Tornado Cash Developer Is (Sort of) Free
While some await trial in France, which is kind of being in prison either way, Tornado Cash’s developer Alexey Pertsev has been released from prison on Friday as he awaits an appeal of his conviction on money laundering charges, according to his lawyer, Judith de Boer.
De Boer stated that Pertsev’s release would allow them to prepare his defense better. Pertsev commented on X, saying that while his release is not “real freedom”, it will allow him to work on his appeal under electronic monitoring.
A Dutch court sentenced him to 64 months in May 2024, but he appealed to the decision last year. The prosecutors claimed the platform enabled criminals to launder over US$1B (AU$1.56B) through at least 36 hacks of digital asset platforms.
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