PARIS — Pavel Durov, the Russian-born founder of messaging app Telegram , was arrested in France as part of an investigation into crimes related to child pornography, drug trafficking and fraudulent transactions on the platform, French prosecutors said on Monday. READ: Telegram messaging app CEO Durov arrested in France, French media say | Factbox: Who is Pavel Durov, CEO of messaging app Telegram? French President Emmanuel Macron, making the first official confirmation of Durov’s arrest since he was detained at Le Bourget airport outside Paris on Saturday evening, said there was no political motive in the arrest, despite many false comments online. He added that France remains deeply committed to lawful free speech.
“The arrest of the Telegram president on French territory took place as part of an ongoing judicial investigation,” Macron wrote on X. “This is in no way a political decision. It is up to the judges to decide.
” In a subsequent statement, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said Durov was arrested as part of a probe into an unnamed person launched by the office’s cybercrime unit on July 8. The investigation is over suspected complicity in various crimes including running an online platform that allows illicit transactions, child pornography, drug trafficking and fraud, as well as the refusal to communicate information to authorities, money laundering and providing cryptographic services to criminals, the statement said. Durov can be held until Wednesday, .