After nearly two days of speculation following Pavel Durov’s arrest, the official charges are now out, and they’re pretty serious. Pavel is looking at up to 20 years in prison if things go sideways.
The French prosecutors aren’t holding back, accusing him of a laundry list of crimes that range from fraud to some really dark stuff.
They’re saying Pavel was basically running a platform that helped make some illegal transactions happen, and not just by accident. They’re accusing him of being a part of it all, like a silent partner in crime.
If that wasn’t enough, there are accusations that Pavel refused to cooperate with the law when they came looking for data or documents. France claims he didn’t hand over information needed for lawful interceptions.
Pavel is also being charged with possessing and distributing child pornography, supposedly within an organized group. The French authorities are saying he was part of a group that shared this content.
Drugs are also in the mix. They’re alleging he was involved in acquiring, transporting, and selling narcotics. And on top of all that, they’re saying he was involved in cybercrime too. Offering up tools and programs to hack into systems? That’s on the list.
The French are making it sound like he was running a black-market Amazon for illegal tech. There’s also money laundering on the table. France is also saying he provided cryptology services without the proper paperwork, trying to keep things hidden.
They’re hitting him with charges for offering tools that could mess with data systems without telling the right people first. Meanwhile, President Emmanuel Macron has been quick to distance himself from any idea that this is a political move. He said:
“France is deeply committed to freedom of expression and communication, to innovation, and to the spirit of entrepreneurship. It will remain so.”
