Ethan Guo is a 19-year-old pilot from the U.S. He began an around-the-world journey with a noble goal: become the youngest pilot to fly to all seven continents while raising $1 million for charities fighting childhood cancer.

Guo’s millions of social media followers watched him depart North America, then fly to South America, Asia, Africa, Australia, and Europe. There was only one problem: getting permission from the relevant authorities to fly to Antarctica — as outlined in the Antarctic Treaty System — is difficult. And that may be by design. Unpredictable weather can make it a treacherous journey. Small, single-engine airplanes like Guo’s Cessna 182Q rarely attempt it.

Without a completed trial, we only know the allegations against Guo. But it appears he posted a flight plan for a self-directed “lookaround” that would begin and end at Punta Arenas Airport in mainland Chile. Once he was in the air, he declared an emergency so he could deviate from his flight plan. Then he flew 745 miles, passed 16 airstrips, and landed on King George Island. That island happens to be the first stop in the Antarctic, so Guo could technically say he had arrived on his seventh continent. But his celebration was short-lived.

You can see a map of Guo’s flight created by a pilot, in the Reddit post embedded below:

Guo was still technically in Chilean territory because he had landed at a Chilean military base. And the authorities were not happy with him. “Everything was good for like an hour. Then they came up to me and then they just told me to follow them. They didn’t say a single word. Then they told me I was under arrest. I asked them, ‘What am I under arrest for?’”

Guo felt he did nothing wrong when he flew to Antarctica

According to Guo, he did nothing wrong. “It was an international flight plan. It was approved by the Chilean government. I had the official Chilean government stamps.” He added, “I paid the international fees. I cleared international customs. This was all documented.”

The Chilean government charged Guo with filing “false flight plan data.” They didn’t keep him under arrest while they prepared for trial. They just told him to stay in Chile. But they had another problem.

Chilean authorities felt the teenager had gotten lucky navigating the Drake Passage in his tiny plane. It is, after all, winter in the Southern Hemisphere. Guo wanted to fly his own Cessna back to the mainland, but Chilean prosecutor Cristián Crisosto said his plane “does not have the capabilities to make a flight.”

Meanwhile, the weather has been too severe for any other flights. So Guo has been stuck on the Chilean military base on King George Island — for six weeks.

International media has been treating the incident like some kind of hostage negotiation. Guo’s followers are calling on the Chilean government to “release him.” With pressure mounting, a Chilean judge finally announced a solution: they told Guo they would toss out the entire trial if he donates $30,000 to a children’s cancer foundation in Chile. They also told him to get out of the country and not come back for at least three years.

Guo texted the Associated Press that he is “relieved by the outcome.” But he still seems to think Chile will let him fly his single-engine plane back over the Drake Passage, by himself. “I remain in Antarctica awaiting approval for my departure flight… I sincerely hope they give it to me soon so that I and my plane can continue with my original mission.” You can see Guo interviewed in the video below: