U.S. Tourist Arrested After Illegally Entering North Sentinel Island

Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov is under Indian custody for attempting contact with the isolated and protected Sentinelese tribe, reigniting concerns about preserving Indigenous isolation.

Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov, a 24-year-old U.S. tourist, was arrested on April 2, 2025, for illegally entering the restricted North Sentinel Island in India's Andaman Islands.
Polyakov briefly landed on the island on March 31, 2025, leaving offerings of a Diet Coke can and a coconut before recording a video and leaving the area.
Indian authorities are investigating whether local individuals assisted Polyakov in his illegal entry, which violated strict laws prohibiting travel within three miles of the island.
The Sentinelese tribe, numbering approximately 150, remains highly vulnerable to diseases due to their isolation and has a history of hostility toward outsiders, including fatal incidents in 2006 and 2018.
Activists and organizations have condemned Polyakov's actions as reckless, emphasizing the risks posed to both the tribe's survival and the broader ethical challenges of protecting uncontacted Indigenous groups.