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The American tourist who put the world’s most isolated tribe at risk when he allegedly made an illegal landing on the remote island and left behind a can of Coke is a wannabe travel influencer who spent time with gun toting Taliban in Afghanistan.
Mykhailo Viktorovych Polyakov was arrested in India‘s Andaman and Nicobar Islands after he allegedly made an illegal and unauthorized landing at the tribal reserve on North Sentinel Island.
Polyakov, 24, regularly posts his exploits on YouTube under the username Neo-Orientalist, a direct reference to the the concept of neo-Orientalism – how Western countries often portray the Islamic world in a stereotypical and negative way.
He seemingly teased his visit to North Sentinel Island five months ago when he posted a cartoon image of a Tintin style adventurer, accompanied with a small brown dog, sailing a small boat towards a desert island. He captioned it: ‘A little Columbus day teaser for the fans.’
Commentators were quick to point out the resemblance between the post and his current situation following his arrest for visiting the prohibited reserve, which is inhabited by the reclusive and ‘particularly vulnerable’ Sentinelese tribe.
One comment branded the image as ‘disturbing’, while another read: ‘This shows premediated evidence for the crime you just got arrested for. Top tier brain activity.’
Polyakov – whose YouTube channel has just under 400 subscribers – visited Afghanistan last year, detailing his journey in a series of videos titled ‘Taliban-Controlled Afghanistan Through American Eyes’.
The footage shows Polyakov being handed a machine gun by the Taliban and exploring Soviet-era tanks in the area. The influencer was visited Afghanistan despite the US State Department placing the country under a level four ‘do not travel’ alert.
Polyakov, who father is Ukrainian, was arrested this week after illegally landing on North Sentinel Island for roughly five minutes. He remains in police custody pending further questioning.
Polyakov posted a series of six 30 minute videos on YouTube last September, detailing his visit to Afghanistan – which is controlled by the Taliban.
The footage charted his three week stay as he filmed himself walking through the streets ‘enjoying tea with locals’ and interacting with the Taliban.
One clip shows the moment the Taliban hands him an assault-style weapon and draped an ammunition belt across his neck. Polyakov can be heard saying ‘yes,’ as he holds the weapon up, before unleashing a shot in another clip.
He wrote: ‘In this series, I take a three-week road trip across what has become the unrecognized Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan following the chaotic US withdrawal in 2021 and the rapid takeover of the country by the Taliban.
‘Recognized as a terrorist group by many countries, the Taliban maintain a strict theocratic regime in which music, dancing, women’s education, being clean shaven, using birth control, and even the depiction of faces are forbidden.’
He closes by telling his 398 subscribers: ‘Join me as I navigate one of the most dangerous and unquestionably the most conservative country in the world. Don’t forget to like, comment and subscribe for more!’
In another clip he is also seen having a haircut in a barber for $2 and he comes out telling viewers: ‘Just got a fresh cut. Looking extra crispy today.
‘Great thing it cost only $2 and unlike in America where they flip a tablet and demand 30 per cent above the price which is always great,’ before adding how he was also given a coat of lipstick as well.
Other videos showing him walking through an abandoned US military base as he explores a sand bugged bunker with bullet holes and shrapnel damage. He asks ‘how much did we leave behind?’ as he films destroyed military vehicles.
Seemingly oblivious to the danger he has exposed himself to, he also posted a clip called Road Rage Afghan Edition in which he said a ‘traffic dispute ends in gunfire.’
Polyakov arrived in Port Blair, the capital city of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, on March 26. He sailed across a 25-mile straight from Kurma Dera Beach to North Sentinel Island on a makeshift craft three days later.
He departed for forbidden island around 1am on March 29 and arrived at its northeastern shores after having navigated there using a GPS.
Looking through binoculars, he surveyed the area for signs of life. Polyakov spent roughly an hour blowing a whistle from his inflatable boat in hopes of drawing attention to himself, but received no response.
He then proceeded to land on the island, police told The Press Trust of India. He spent about five minutes collecting sand samples, recording a video and leaving behind a can of soda and a coconut as ‘offerings for the Sentinelese’ tribe.
Police say his journey to the prohibited territory was meticulously planned, alleging that the tourist had studied sea conditions, tides and access points before making he set sail.
He returned to Kurma Dera Beach around 7pm that same day, where he was spotted by local fishermen who then reported his activities to police.
Polyakov was arrested and officers seized his boat, an outboard motor and a GoPro containing video of his landing on the restricted island.
The Sentinelese tribe are considered a particularly vulnerable group, with experts warning that Polyakov’s attempted visit was ‘reckless and idiotic’.
The tribe is reportedly hostile towards outsiders, attacked almost everyone who has entered their territory.
In addition to putting himself in danger, experts note that Polyakov put the entire Sentinelese tribe at risk of being wiped out from common diseases, such as measles or influenza, to which they have no immunity.
Polyakov, as of Wednesday, remained in custody for further interrogation.
‘We are getting more details about him and his intention to visit the reserved tribal area,’ Andaman and Nicobar Islands’ Director General of Police told the newspaper.
Investigators are also trying to identify where else Polyakov visited during his stay in the region and are ‘questioning the hotel staff where he was staying in Port Blair’.
Indian authorities prohibit visits to North Sentinel Island in an effort to protect the Sentinelese tribe from outside threats.
The US Embassy, the Ministry of External Affairs and the Home Department have been notified of his arrest.
The American tourist previously visited Port Blair in October last year with plans to sail to North Sentinel Island using an inflatable kayak, but was stopped by hotel staff.
He returned to the region again in January this year and tried to obtain a motor for his boat. According to police, he visited the Baratang Islands during that visit and allegedly illegally recorded video of the Jarawa tribe.
Caroline Pearce, the director of indigenous rights group Survival International, branded Polyakov’s attempt to visit the island as ‘reckless and idiotic’.
‘This person’s actions not only endangered his own life, they put the lives of the entire Sentinelese tribe at risk,’ she said in a statement provided to MailOnline.
‘It’s very well known by now that uncontacted peoples have no immunity to common outside diseases like flu or measles, which could completely wipe them out.’
Pearce added that the ‘Sentinelese have made their wish to avoid outsiders incredibly clear over the years’, citing how American missionary John Chau was murdered by the tribe in November 2018.
Chau, 26, was killed in a hail of arrows as he went ashore on North Sentinel Island. He had been persistently trying to reach out to the Sentinelese in a bid to talk to them about Jesus – a move which his friend said ‘he knew that he had no business doing.’
The tribe then tied a rope around his neck and dragging his body away, according to the fishermen who helped him get there. His body remains on the island.
Chau began his missionary training at the All Nations International headquarters in Kansas City in October 2017 before setting out into the world.
The group subscribes to the belief that spreading the word of God to ‘all nations’ will cause the second coming of Jesus and works to speedily meet that goal.
The missionary previously visited the Andaman Islands, which includes North Sentinel Island, in 2015 and 2016. His goal was to return to build a long-term relationship with the tribespeople in the area, and if possible, to be accepted to live amongst them.
He organized his 2018 visit to the island through a friend who hired seven fishermen for $325 to take him there on a boat which also towed his kayak. His first attempt at reaching out was on November 15.
Chau paddled toward the shore in his kayak and sent the boat with the fishermen back out to sea in a bid to avoid detection.
But he was undeterred and just a few hours later returned – this time attempting to walk to the beach to deliver gifts such as a football and fish to the tribespeople.
He was once again met with hostility and was chased back into the surf before he frantically swam toward the fishermen who had been waiting for him.
However, he still remained undeterred by the group’s anger and returned twice more. He was again met with hostility and the final attempt would prove to be fatal.
Speaking again of Polyakov’s arrest, Pearce said: ‘It’s good news that the man in this latest incident has been arrested, but deeply disturbing that he was reportedly able to get onto the island in the first place.’
‘The Indian authorities have a legal responsibility to ensure that the Sentinelese are safe from missionaries, social media influencers, people fishing illegally in their waters and anyone else who may try to make contact with them.’
MailOnline has approached police and the US Embassy in India for comment.
The Sentinelese, who are considered to be the world’s last pre-Neolithic tribe, have a history of hostility towards outsiders. Because of their rejection of the outside world, little is known about them – including what they call themselves.
What is known has been gleaned from viewing them from boats moored far enough away from the tribesmen, who carry spears, bows and arrows, or from the few times the tribe allowed authorities to come close enough to hand over coconuts.
The Sentinelese attracted international attention in the wake of the 2004 Asian tsunami, when a member of the tribe was photographed on a beach, firing arrows at a helicopter that was checking on their welfare.
North Sentinel Island is out of bounds even to the Indian navy in a bid to protect its reclusive inhabitants who number only about 150.
Campaigns by non-profit and local organizations have led the Indian government to abandon plans to contact the Sentinelese.
It is illegal to have any contact with the tribe and the Indian government said even taking photographs or making videos of aboriginal Andaman tribes would be punishable with imprisonment of up to three years.
Survival International, which works to ensure that no further attempts are made to contact the tribe, says the Sentinelese have thrived on the small forested island – which is approximately the size of Manhattan – for up to 55,000 years.
The women wear fiber strings tied around their waists, necks and heads. The men also wear necklaces and headbands, but with a thicker waist belt.
From a distance, they appear healthy and thriving and observers have noted many children and pregnant women at times.
According to Survival, the Sentinelese hunt and gather in the forest, and fish in the coastal waters by make narrow outrigger canoes, which can only be used in shallow waters as they are steered and propelled with a pole like a punt.
