Why was Herman Melville jailed in Tahiti after leaving the Lucy Ann?

Herman Melville was jailed in Tahiti after participating in a mutiny while serving as a crew member on the Australian whaler Lucy Ann.1

Although the voyage had been unproductive, the mutiny was described in his 1847 novel Omoo as a somewhat farcical event. Melville was held in a Tahitian jail following the incident, though he noted that he was able to escape from the facility without difficulty.12