Authorities Fail To Find Body Of Christian Missionary Slain By Andaman Tribals, Might Take Several More Days

Authorities on the Andaman & Nicobar islands on Thursday (21 November) disclosed that they had not yet recovered the dead body of the slain American missionary John Allen Chau who had trespassed into the North Sentinel island in an attempt to convert local Sentinelese tribals.

Police said that a ship and a helicopter were being utilised to try and find the body, but it may still take several more days before it is retrieved, reported The New Indian Express.

John Allen Chau was killed by the Sentinelese when he slipped into the restricted island with the help of local fishermen. The North Sentinel island is off-limits to outsiders as the government seeks to protect the endangered Sentinelese, from disease and encroachment.

DGP Andaman & Nicobar islands Deependra Pathak, explained the recovery efforts, “We maintained a distance from the island and have not yet been able to spot the body. It may take some more days and... (reconnaissance) of the area,”

Police are taking the help of experts like anthropologists and tribal and forest officials to help them deal with the situation. Pathak added that they were taking all measures to ensure that the Sentinelese and their habitat were not disturbed. He said that the North Sentinel island was a sensitive zone and thus recovery efforts would take some time.

The authorities registered an FIR for murder against “unknown persons” and also arrested six fishermen and one other individual who had allegedly aided Chau on his journey to the island.