DUBAI, United Arab Emirates -- Over more than a decade, the founder and CEO of the messaging app Telegram has amassed various different citizenships, something that's only added to the mystery surrounding his detention in France.

These passports provided Pavel Durov protection after he founded and led Telegram as a self-proclaimed champion of free speech. The app has been utilized by some to organize protests in oppressive regimes like Iran and his native Russia. However, Western governments claim Telegram facilitated the activities of drug traffickers, money launderers, militant groups, and child pornographers.

"To achieve true freedom, one must be prepared to risk everything for it," Durov once wrote on Instagram, the caption accompanying images of himself shirtless, with the skyscrapers of Dubai or the ruins of Mada’in Saleh in Saudi Arabia as the backdrop.

Despite holding passports from Russia, France, the United Arab Emirates, and Saint Kitts and Nevis, and his estimated wealth of $15.5 billion according to Forbes, that risk now appears to have caught up with him.

Durov was released from French custody Wednesday after being detained on Saturday at Paris-Le Bourget Airport. The allegations against him include the use of his platform for child sexual abuse material and drug trafficking, fraud, and aiding organized criminal activities. He is accused of refusing to provide information or documents to investigators when legally required. He is scheduled to appear in court later Wednesday.

Durov, 39, reportedly began seeking other citizenships over a decade ago. The reason, according to him, was a conflict over control of VKontakte, “In Contact,” known as VK, a social media platform that at the time surpassed Facebook in Russia.

Russian security agencies had taken steps to block pages connected to a Ukrainian protest movement that aided in the removal of the country's Kremlin-backed president, Viktor Yanukovych. Durov published online what appeared to be documents from the Federal Security Service, or FSB, requesting personal information on groups involved in the protests.

After resigning on April Fool's Day, initially seemingly as a joke, Durov left VK for good. He reportedly obtained a residency visa to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates' business hub. He also obtained a Saint Kitts and Nevis passport, reportedly by contributing $250,000 to the Caribbean nation's sugar industry.

Saint Kitts and Nevis remains a popular tax haven for the wealthy and for individuals needing passports that bypass stringent visa requirements for travel to other countries.

In a 2017 VK post, Durov revealed that he obtained a Saint Kitts and Nevis passport in the spring of 2013. He described it as “a convenient thing, as it allows visa-free travel to the EU and Britain.”

Durov clarified that he had never actually visited the Caribbean island nation, nor did he have any plans to travel there. He added that “one can obtain the passport without leaving Europe.”

By 2017, Durov was residing full-time in Dubai, with his Telegram office operating from Dubai Media City.

“I love it here,” he told Bloomberg at the time. “It’s developing so rapidly, like a start-up.” The news organization estimated his wealth at the time to be $300 million and 2,000 bitcoins — a cryptocurrency that has seen its value surge significantly since then.

During this period, the United Arab Emirates granted Durov citizenship — an unusual occurrence in a country where 90% of the population are foreign nationals with no path to citizenship.

The UAE has not disclosed its reasons for granting Durov citizenship. However, its state-run WAM news agency on Tuesday publicly confirmed his citizenship and requested France to provide him “with all the necessary consular services in an urgent matter.” According to Emirati law, investors, medical professionals, specialists, and intellectuals can be eligible for citizenship if approved by one of the country's seven rulers, a crown prince, or the federal government in this autocratic nation.

Durov was spotted in a meeting with Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum, Dubai's crown prince, back in 2021. A report from WAM at the time stated that Telegram was “globally headquartered in Dubai” and valued at over $20 billion.

The UAE, particularly Dubai, has been actively trying to attract internet and e-commerce companies for a number of years. Durov also joined an advisory council for its ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Abu Dhabi's sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala, invested $75 million in Telegram that same year, as did another Abu Dhabi company.

His French citizenship remains more murky.

Durov officially obtained French citizenship in 2021, with his name being published in the naturalization section of France's Official Gazette on August 25th of that year. In May 2022, he officially changed the transliteration of his name in French to Paul du Rove, as per a government decree.

The details surrounding Durov's French naturalization process — typically a long and complex bureaucratic procedure for most — are kept confidential due to French privacy regulations.

Durov seemingly did not meet the standard requirements of residing legally in the country for two to five years or having French family members, but may have qualified for a rare citizenship path designated for especially “merited foreigners.” According to the French government, this applies to French-speaking foreigners who "contribute through their distinguished actions to the global influence of France and the prosperity of its international economic relationships."

Durov met with French President Emmanuel Macron in 2018, and they engaged in a discussion similar to those the French president regularly holds with global business leaders about expanding their operations in France, according to an official familiar with the meeting.

Durov's request for French citizenship was made to the French Foreign Ministry, not directly to Macron, the official stated.

The official requested anonymity due to their lack of authorization to publicly discuss private presidential meetings.

France and the UAE enjoy a strong military partnership, with French forces operating a naval base in Abu Dhabi and Emirati forces utilizing Leclerc tanks and Rafale fighter jets. Macron is also believed to have a close relationship with Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the leader of Abu Dhabi. The arrest led to the circulation of a fake video online late Tuesday, falsely attributed to the Al Jazeera satellite news network, claiming an arms deal between the countries was in jeopardy.

However, much like other aspects of Durov's life, the details remain unclear. He has previously prevented interviewers from taking photographs of his offices and other locations, meticulously managing his public image.

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Associated Press journalists Barbara Surk in Nice, France, and Angela Charlton in Paris contributed to this report.