The tech billionaire breaks his silence more than a week after being indicted by French authorities. He faces wide-ranging charges including complicity to distribute child abuse images and to traffic drugs.

The Russian-born tech billionaire was arrested by French authorities on Saturday. Prosecutors in Paris had been questioning him in connection with an investigation focused on drug trafficking

Authorities in Paris said on Monday that Durov is being held on questions stemming from an investigation into criminal activity on the app, including the spread of child pornography and facilitating the selling of illegal drugs.

The messaging app Telegram has been heavily used by both sides in the war in Ukraine. But privacy experts say people using the service should be wary of the app's level of security.