Carrying coconut, coke 'as offerings,' man tries to befriend Sentinelese
What's the story
Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, a 24-year-old US citizen, has been arrested from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands for allegedly sneaking into the restricted tribal reserve of North Sentinel Island.
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) made the arrest on March 31.
According to police reports, Polyakov had entered the protected area without any official permission.
He had arrived in Port Blair on March 26 and then traveled to North Sentinel Island from Kurma Dera beach.
Investigation
Polyakov's journey and intentions questioned
Police said Polyakov had set sail from Kurma Dera beach at about 1:00am on March 29, carrying a coconut and cola can as "offerings."
By 10:00am he had reached the northeastern shore of North Sentinel Island. He surveyed the area for around five minutes through binoculars but couldn't find any sign of inhabitants.
After spending an hour offshore blowing a whistle to attract attention, but with none, he left the offerings on the shore, collected sand samples, and left.
Actions
Polyakov's brief stay on North Sentinel Island
He started the journey back at 1:00pm and reached Kurma Dera Beach at 7:00pm where he was spotted by local fishermen.
DGP HS Dhaliwal said they are collecting more details on Polyakov's purpose behind visiting the reserved tribal area.
Among the things seized from him were an inflatable boat and an outboard motor, or OBM, which he had assembled in a local workshop.
History
Prior visits and illegal activities
This isn't Polyakov's first visit to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
He had visited Port Blair last October and had attempted a reconnaissance mission for North Sentinel Island in an inflatable kayak but was intercepted by hotel staff.
In January this year, he attempted to buy a motor for his boat during another visit.
He had allegedly illegally filmed the Jarawa tribe while visiting Baratang Islands during that trip.
An FIR has been registered against Polyakov.