VANCOUVER, WA — A Washington man was killed recently when he set foot on a remote Indian island, according to reports. It’s unclear what happened to John Allen Chau, but authorities in India believe members of a tribe living on the island shot and killed Chau with bows and arrows.

Chau, 27, went to North Sentinel Island in the Andaman Sea sometime on Nov. 16 on a mission to spread Christianity. He trained in 2017 to be a missionary with the Kansas City nonprofit All Nations.

North Sentinel is off limits because members of the tribe want to be left alone, and they have killed visitors in the past to maintain their solitude. The Indian government forbids anyone from visiting the island.

North Sentinel is located about 830 miles east of mainland India. People have successfully visited the island and its inhabitants, but the Indian government has maintained a no-go zone around the island since 1996, according to the New York Times.

According to an article in a hiking blog, Chau was an experienced Pacific Northwest hiker and adventure seeker, and appeared to be especially enthralled with the Andaman Islands.

“Going back to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in India is on the top — there’s so much to see and do there!” Chau told an interviewer from The Outbound Collective.

Chau lived in Vancouver and was a graduate of Oral Roberts University.

“John was a gracious and sensitive ambassador of Jesus Christ who wanted others to know of God’s great love for them,” said All Nations International Executive Leader Dr. Mary Ho in a statement. “As we grieve for our friend, and pray for all those who mourn his death, we also know that he would want us to pray for those who may have been responsible for his death.

Chau’s body is likely still on the island. The fishermen who showed Chau how to get to North Sentinel witnessed members of the tribe dragging his lifeless body across a beach, according to the New York Times. Chau had apparently made several attempts to land on the island via kayak before he was killed.

Seven people who helped Chau find and land on the island have been charged with culpable homicide not amounting to murder, according to the Times.

Image via Google Maps, All Nations