A United States citizen has been arrested in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands for allegedly entering the restricted tribal reserve area of the North Sentinel island, PTI reported on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old, identified as Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, was arrested by the Crime Investigation Department on Monday after he allegedly entered the restricted area without permission, the news agency quoted unidentified police officers as saying.

Travelling to the North Sentinel island without a permit is prohibited. The Sentinelese tribe, whose population was around 40 in 2011, have been known to resist contact with outsiders.

The police officers said that Polyakov arrived in Port Blair on March 26, PTI reported. He ventured to the North Sentinel island from the Kurmadera beach on Saturday at around 1 am, carrying a coconut and a can of the beverage Coca-Cola as “offerings for the Sentinelese”, they added.

Polyakov reached the northeastern shore of the North Sentinel island by 10 am and remained offshore for an hour, the news agency quoted the police officers as saying. He surveyed and blew his whistle, but saw nobody, they added.

Following this, Polyakov landed on the shore for about five minutes and left the offerings, the police said, adding that he also collected sand samples and recorded a video before returning to his boat.

He started his journey back to Kurmadera beach at 1 pm and was spotted by fishermen as he arrived at 7 pm, the police officers added.

Another unidentified police officer told The Indian Express that authorities got involved after it was discovered that Polyakov was last seen on Saturday near Kurmadera beach with an inflatable single-seater boat equipped with a small engine.

“We are getting more details about him and his intention to visit the reserved tribal area,” PTI quoted Director General of Police HS Dhaliwal as saying. “We are also trying to find where else he had visited during his stay in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.”

Dhaliwal added that the police were questioning the staff of the hotel in Port Blair where he was staying.

Camera footage found in Polyakov’s possession showed him landing on the North Sentinel island, the police officers told PTI.

A first information report has been filed against him under the Foreigners Act, 1946, along with sections of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands Protection of Aboriginal Tribes Amendment Regulation, 2012.

He was booked on the basis of a complaint registered at the Ograbraj police station by Pronab Sircar, the tribal welfare officer at Tirur, PTI reported.

The 24-year-old is currently in police custody at the direction of a court for further interrogation, according to the news agency.

The Ministry of Home Affairs was informed about his arrest and has communicated it to the US Embassy, The Indian Express reported.

Polyakov had earlier visited the Andaman and Nicobar Islands twice, The Times of India reported.

During his first visit in October, he reportedly attempted to travel to the North Sentinel island on an inflatable kayak but was stopped by hotel staff, according to the newspaper.

On January 18, he visited the Andaman and Nicobar Islands again and allegedly tried to procure a motor for his boat, according to PTI.

“He visited Baratang islands, illegally videographed the Jarawa tribe and explored various locations in Port Blair before leaving on January 27,” The Times of India quoted a police officer as saying.

In 2018, an American missionary named John Allen Chau was killed by the Sentinelese tribe after he illegally tried to enter the North Sentinel island.

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