Telegram boss and founder Pavel Durov has been placed under formal investigation in France as part of a probe into organised crime on the messaging app, Paris prosecutors say.
Mr Durov, 39, has not been remanded in custody, but placed under judicial supervision, and has to pay a $5.6 million deposit.
The Russian-born billionaire, who is also a French national, also has to show up at a French police station twice a week and is not allowed to leave French territory.
Mr Durov was first detained upon arrival at Le Bourget airport north of Paris last Saturday under a warrant for offences related to the app.
In Wednesday’s statement, the Paris prosecutors said Mr Durov was put under formal investigation over alleged offences that included:
Complicity in the administration of an online platform to enable illicit transactions by an organised gang.
Refusal to communicate with authorities and Complicity in organised criminal distribution of sexual images of children.
In France, being put under formal investigation does not imply guilt or necessarily result in a trial – but it indicates that judges consider there is enough of a case to proceed with an investigation.
