The email with Maxwell telling him the island is closed was fake. He went to the island multiple times and even took his wife at the time with him, Telulah Riley Iirc.
It's more insidious than that. They want to create a cast of men who have no sense of community or connection to anyone. Removing this connection makes it easier to radicalize these young men. You replace their sense of connection to their community and family with a connection to the patriarchy or dear leader or some other religious figure.
The email with Maxwell telling him the island is closed was fake. He went to the island multiple times and even took his wife at the time with him, Telulah Riley Iirc.