A breakthrough has been made in the recent arson attack that left scores of families homeless in the Port St John’s area in the Eastern Cape.

A 57-year-old soldier has been arrested in connection with the deadly crimes waged against the people of the villages of Majola. He comes from the same area.

The army officer who is due to appear in a local court faces charges of murder, attempted murder and arson.

Earlier this month, during the early hours of the morning more than 50 homesteads and about 100 homes were burnt down. A Task Team was established to probe this criminality.

Eastern Cape Police Commissioner, Lieutenant General Nomthetheleli Mene has commended the community for supporting police in their ongoing investigation. But she has expressed concern noting that they need to get to the root cause of these factional fights in order to put a stop to the unwarranted violence. She adds that this suspect must point police to the other culprits, as they believe these crimes were not carried out by one man.