NEW DELHI, Nov. 21 (Xinhua) -- A 27-year-old U.S. tourist was killed by a protected hostile tribe in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, police said Wednesday.
John Allen Chau went to North Sentinel Island, where the indigenous Sentinelese tribesmen live.
Reports said fishermen took Chau to the island.
Police said seven fishermen have been arrested in connection with the murder.
The fishermen reportedly told the police that they last saw the man being attacked with bows and arrows after he landed on the island towards the southern Andamans on Nov. 16.
The tribesmen dragged the man to the beach, following which they sailed away from the island after seeing Chau's body half-buried in the sand.
Reports said one of the fishermen reached Port Blair and narrated the incident to a local preacher, Alex, who was a friend of Chau.
The local preacher then informed the dead man's family in the U.S., who immediately contacted the U.S. embassy in New Delhi for help.
Authorities in the area have launched helicopter search teams to look for the body.
"We have received an information about the body of a foreign national at the remote Sentinelese Islands. The matter is under investigation," Deputy Commissioner of South Andaman Udit Prakash Rai was quoted by local media as having said. "The local police are making efforts to recover the body."
