Telegram founder Durov appeared in court for the first time in Paris, suspected of being set up by France.

Telegram founder Durov appeared in a Paris court on 12/6 to answer questions. The French prosecutor accused Telegram of being an illegalMedium of Exchange, and Durov himself said that he "believes in the French judicial decision," but did not disclose more details about the case.

Durov appeared in the Paris court, the legal team is fully prepared

According to reports, Telegram founder Pavel Durov, along with his own lawyers David-Olivier Kaminski and Christophe Ingrain, appeared together at the Paris Court in France at 10 a.m. on 12/6 to face the first questioning related to allegations of being an illegal Medium of Exchange and involvement in organized crime. Although Durov himself stated outside the court that 'he believes in the French judicial decision', he refused to further explain the progress of the case and the defense content.

The French prosecutor's office set up early, and the case has been under investigation since the beginning of the year

The controversy can be traced back to February 2024 when the French prosecutors launched a preliminary investigation into Telegram, which was upgraded to a judicial investigation on 7/8. Durov was arrested on the spot at Le Bourget Airport in Paris on 8/24 and was released after paying a $5 million bail, but was still restricted from leaving the country until March 2025.

On 8/28, the French prosecutor formally filed preliminary charges against Telegram, accusing it of being an illegal trading tool. If convicted, Durov could face up to 10 years in prison and a fine of €500,000.

(Goodbye France? Telegram founder Durov: Leave if the ideas don't match)

The case has sparked global concerns about Web3 privacy technology.

This case not only affects Durov personally, but also raises global concerns about Web3 privacy protection technology. Some industry insiders worry that this may be a new wave of crackdowns against privacy protection technology developers, with governments possibly overstepping their bounds.

European encryption initiative organization's senior policy officer Vyara Savova said that this case shares similarities with the case of Alexey Pertsev, the developer of the privacy technology decentralized mixer Tornado Cash. Pertsev was arrested by the Dutch prosecutor for developing decentralized privacy technology and did not receive partial legal victory until 11/26. The two cases mentioned above show that there is still judicial pressure on privacy protection technology.

(Will DeFi Be Immune to Regulation? Tornado Cash Lawsuit Gains Advantage, U.S. Court Rules OFAC Overreached in Sanctioning Smart Contract)

There are other doubts behind it, and Durov may have been set up by France.

It is worth noting that Durov's phone was allegedly hacked in 2017, yet a year later he met with French President Macron and was asked to relocate Telegram's headquarters to Paris. Durov declined this proposal but requested Macron's assistance in obtaining French citizenship.

Although Macron denied inviting Durov to France to establish a business, this past incident has made the case more complex. It is believed that if Telegram can obtain data from the relevant servers, it may be able to prove that Macron intentionally 'induced' Durov to come to France and trap him. The situation for Telegram and privacy technology developers remains to be seen.

Why was Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram and the spiritual leader of TON, arrested? It's not about freedom, it's about crime and cryptocurrency.

This article is the first time Telegram's founder Durov has been on trial in Paris, and the outside world calls it a suspected set-up by France, first appeared in Chain News ABMedia.