Durov Deletes Video of Swimming in Kolsai Lakes to Avoid Fine

He spoke at the forum and went for a swim. Photo: Digital Business.kz

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov has deleted from his channel a video showing him swimming in one of the lakes of Kazakhstan’s Kolsai Lakes National Park.

After the video went viral on social media, the park administration launched an internal investigation. The management promised to punish the staff members who failed to ensure proper control of the area, TASS reports.

At the same time, the park clarified that its inspectors did not personally record the violation, so no fine will be imposed on Durov.

According to Kazakh law, swimming in prohibited areas carries a fine of 10 monthly calculation indices, which is about 39,000 tenge (around $73).

Pavel Durov visited Kazakhstan last week to participate in the Digital Bridge forum in Astana. At the forum’s opening, he announced that Telegram is launching an artificial intelligence research lab in Astana.