Pavel Durov and the problem with anonymous sperm donation

He’s the founder of Telegram. He was arrested in France. He also claims to have fathered at least 100 children.
Pavel Durov, the elusive − and often shirtless − founder of the end-to-end encrypted messaging app Telegram is in the news again after getting arrested and detained Saturday after France’s OFMIN, which is responsible for safeguarding minors from violence, issued an arrest warrant. The agency accused Durov of failing to crack down on criminal activity – including drug trafficking, the promotion of terrorism and fraud – taking place on his platform, the news agency AFP reported.
The 39-year-old Russian-born billionaire often keeps his personal life out of the spotlight. Something he has shared, however, is that, despite never marrying and preferring to live alone, he’s fathered at least 100 children through anonymous sperm donation − a controversial practice.
“Of course, there are risks, but I don’t regret having been a donor,” Durov wrote in a Telegram post last month. “The shortage of healthy sperm has become an increasingly serious issue worldwide, and I’m proud that I did my part to help alleviate it.”
Sperm donation has allowed many people to have families who otherwise wouldn’t be able to; however, the anonymous practice has drawn several detractors, including from those who’ve been conceived through it. These people have shared with USA TODAY the mental turmoil of learning they have, in some cases, hundreds of half-siblings.
“The only people who understand what we are going through are those who are literally going through it too,” Jaclyn Frosolone, who found out that she was conceived through anonymous sperm donation and that she has at least 200 siblings following a 23andMe DNA test, previously told USA TODAY. “Although it seems like there’s nobody out there, there’s actually too many experiencing the exact same thing I am, which is terrifying.”
More:These women discovered they were siblings. Then, they found hundreds more. It has taken a toll.
Durov opened up on Telegram about his decision to become a sperm donor, saying he did so out of a sense of responsibility to help more couples have children.
“The boss of the clinic told me that ‘high-quality donor material’ was in short supply and that it was my civic duty to donate more sperm to anonymously help more couples,” Durov wrote, adding his sperm so far has helped over 100 couples across 12 countries have children. One in vitro fertilization clinic, he said, still has his sperm frozen and available for anonymous use.
Durov noted he plans to “open-source” his DNA so his biological children can find each other more easily.
“I also want to help destigmatize the whole notion of sperm donation and incentivize more healthy men to do it, so that families struggling to have kids can enjoy more options,” he wrote. “Defy convention – redefine the norm!”
Who is Pavel Durov?What to know about Russian-born Telegram owner arrested in France
Critics of anonymous sperm donation, however, say the practice comes with a host of issues and complications that donor-conceived people spend their lifetimes unraveling.
One of the main criticisms of the practice is that the anonymity of the donor makes it difficult or impossible for donor-conceived people to learn about their health and treat genetically inherited medical issues. Even when donor-conceived people have their donor’s identity and contact information, there’s still no guarantee they’ll respond or tell the truth.
Also, most sperm banks in the United States aren’t legally required to keep records of siblings or cap the number of families that can use a specific donor. As a result, donor-conceived people with many siblings often live in fear of accidentally having children with one of their half-siblings, or even having children with their own father if they were to pursue donor insemination.
“I have quite a few gay siblings that would have to go through donors to have children,” Jamie LeRose, one of Frosolone’s half-sisters, previously told USA TODAY. “I would rather die than find out that one of them had a baby with our dad because they didn’t know.”
She added that fear of incest has affected her dating life as well: “I’m 23 and the last guy I was with was 40 years old because I literally look at people my age, and I’m grossed out.”
More:AncestryDNA, 23andMe introduce you to new relatives. Now the nightmare: They won’t offer medical history.
Jana Rupnow, a licensed psychotherapist in Dallas who has counseled donor-conceived people for 14 years, previously told USA TODAY of the identity crisis that often occurs when these people learn about their family histories.
“Our health is a part of our identity,” Rupnow said. “You have to unravel the shock of finding out your family history is different than you thought, all while dealing with anxiety over the unknown.”
Now, Frosolone and other donor-conceived people are on a mission to share their stories so future generations born through anonymous sperm donation have more access to information and protection.
“This has definitely messed me up a little bit, but I’m trying to work through it,” Frosolone previously told USA TODAY. “From here on out, I just really want to help people.”
Contributing: Eric Lagatta and Katie Camero, USA TODAY; Reuters