A 24-year-old YouTuber from Arizona was arrested for trespassing on a forbidden island inhabited by a remote tribe that previously killed a Christian missionary.
Outsiders are banned from coming within three miles of North Sentinel Island, part of India's Andaman Islands, to protect the Sentinelese, a tribe of about 150 indigenous people with no contact with the outside world, from outside diseases.
Earlier this week, Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov used an inflatable motorboat to travel to the island. Local authorities reported that he spent about an hour near the shore, blowing a whistle before making landfall. Once on the island, the YouTuber spent roughly five minutes recording a video and collecting sand samples. He departed shortly after and left behind a Diet Coke can and a coconut as offerings.
The influencer told Indian police he was a "thrill seeker" when he was arrested two days later, per the BBC. He is being held for further interrogation while the U.S. monitors the situation.
Seven years ago, John Allen Chau, a 27-year-old Christian missionary, was shot and killed with bows and arrows when he landed on the island after bribing fisherman to transport him. His body was never recovered.
Originally published on Latin Times
