Paris, August 25 — Pavel Durov, the CEO of the popular messaging app Telegram, was arrested by French police at La Bourget Airport in France. The arrest took place on Saturday night, as reported by BBC News on Sunday.

Durov, 39, arrived in France on a private jet from Azerbaijan. French authorities had already issued an arrest warrant against him, citing the app's alleged non-compliance with French regulations. Telegram has faced criticism in France for its lack of surveillance, making it a favored platform among criminal gangs. The app is particularly popular in countries of the former Soviet Union, including Russia and Ukraine.

Telegram was founded by Durov in 2013, and after being banned in Russia in 2018, it was reopened three years later. Today, Telegram boasts 900 million active users worldwide.