An American tourist risked his life to leave a can of soda and a coconut as a tribute to an isolated tribe in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, only for them to completely ignore him.
Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, 24, visited the restricted North Sentinel Island in the Indian Ocean after traveling there illegally on a single-seat boat. The last outsider who attempted to visit the reclusive Sentinelese tribe was American missionary John Allen Chau, who was killed by the tribe during his visit in 2018, the Press Trust of India reported.
Chau was shot by an arrow after attempting to convert tribe members to Christianity.
Polyakov traveled to the island just after midnight on Saturday, leaving from a beach in South Andaman with a coconut and a can of soda, which he claimed were "offerings for the Sentinelese," according to the director general of police on the islands, HS Dhaliwal.
"We are getting more details about him and his intention to visit the reserved tribal area," Dhaliwal told the outlet. "We are also trying to find out where else he has visited during his stay in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands."
However, Polyakov was seemingly ignored by the tribe after reaching the island. He initially remained offshore on his boat, attempting unsuccessfully to spot tribe members with his binoculars. He continued reportedly attempted to get their attention using a whistle, to no avail.
Eventually, Polyakov made contact with the shore and landed on the island for roughly five minutes during which he left his offerings, collected sand samples and recorded a video, according to law enforcement who confiscated his GoPro camera.
The Ukrainian-American had allegedly conducted an immense amount of research into the sea conditions, tides and how accessible the island would be from the southern beach in advance of his trip.
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