Pavel Durov, the founder and CEO of Telegram, is in the middle of a criminal case in France that could land him in prison for up to 20 years.
While the charges against him are grabbing the headlines, another devastating blow has rocked his personal life.
His girlfriend, Juli Vavilova, has revealed that she suffered a miscarriage, and she believes the stress surrounding Durov’s arrest played a huge role in the tragedy.
Arrest and the pregnancy news
In a post on Telegram, Vavilova narrated how everything happened. On August 24, she, Durov, and Durov’s assistant Mario were held at the airport immediately after arriving in France for hours, their phones and laptops confiscated.
She managed to contact her mom before the devices were taken away, but after that, they were cut off from the world. Eventually, Mario and Vavilova were let go, but Pavel remained in custody.
Pavel Durov and Juli Vavilova
The next day, August 25, Vavilova woke up disconnected and uncertain about what was happening. At this point, neither she nor Mario had any idea what was going on with Durov.
After grabbing breakfast, they bought new phones and were hit with shocking news that Pavel was facing charges that could see him in prison for two decades.
Bloggers started spreading rumors, blaming Vavilova for Durov’s arrest and some stratight up accusing her of being a spy.
In the middle of this chaos, Vavilova felt the need to take a pregnancy test. To her shock, the result confirmed she was pregnant.
In a Parisian café, she read the test’s result, but she couldn’t share the news with anyone.
Source: Juli Vavilova
On top of everything else, police had summoned her for questioning, but her doctor advised her against going because the stress of the situation was already too much for her body in the early stages of pregnancy.
Four weeks later, Vavilova finally went in for questioning, where she spent many hours answering inquiries related to the investigation.
The tragic loss
The following month became a rollercoaster for the couple.
Vavilova focused on both her physical and mental health as she came to terms with the new reality of her pregnancy, all while supporting Durov through his legal nightmare.
Despite the stress and uncertainty, she started to enjoy her pregnancy and even regained access to her social media accounts, which she had been locked out of during Durov’s detainment.
But on October 4 came another devastating turn of events. During a routine medical check-up, doctors informed Vavilova that her baby no longer had a heartbeat.
By this point, she had reached the 10th week of pregnancy, and the news was a crushing blow. They had already grown used to the idea of becoming parents, and now everything had changed in an instant.
The following day, on October 5, she underwent surgery. She said:
“It was quick, with almost no physical pain.”
Meanwhile, Telegram continues its growth and development. Earlier today, it hosted its daily Major Puzzle Durov game.
The game challenges users to solve cryptographic riddles and puzzles for crypto rewards. It was launched in July, and has attracted over 40 million users.
Juli Vavilova on her way to surgery
The puzzles often require users to use cryptographic tools and logical thinking to crack the codes.
The challenge in today’s game was deciphering clues for a chance to earn 5,000 stars, the in-game currency that boosts player rankings.
Telegram has also teased new features like the ability to convert gifts into NFTs.
