FOU: Telegram Founder Pavel Durov Visited Russia Multiple Times Between 2015 and 2021

Russian-language independent news organization Important Stories has reported that Telegram co-founder and CEO Pavel Durov entered Russia more than 50 times between 2015 and 2021. The report cites leaked data on Durov's whereabouts from Russia's main intelligence agency, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB). The data was reportedly leaked around Aug. 20 and hidden again on Aug. 26.Important Stories said it partially verified the data by talking to investigators under Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny.

Durov reportedly did not attempt to hide his travels, having traveled on commercial Aeroflot flights between St. Petersburg, Russia, and cities in Europe, as well as on Russian railroad trains from Russia to Helsinki, Finland. pavel Durov, who is originally from russia, co-founded the russian social network VKontakte in 2006. 2014. In 2014, after stating that he refused to comply with the Russian Federal Security Service's request to disclose personal data on Ukrainian protesters, Durov resigned as CEO and sold his 12% stake to Ivan Tavrin, CEO of the telecommunications company MegaFon.Durov left Russia in April 2014, and his only public visit to Russia was in the fall of 2014 , when he returned to the country for a few days to sell his data center ICVA Ltd.Durov traveled to Russia several times between 2015 and 2017 and between 2020 and 2021, with the only period in which he did not travel to Russia being between 2018 and 2020. In an April interview with Tucker Carlson, Durov claimed that he would not travel to places that were not in line with Telegram's values, including Russia.

Durov was arrested on Aug. 24 in France. He is accused of failing to adequately regulate illegal activity on the communications platform, which French authorities claim was used for drug trafficking, fraud, and organized crime.