The bishop whose two huts were recently gutted by arsonists at Mapuve village outside Giyani, in what is believed to be a revenge arson attack, can now afford a bit of a smile, after police managed to arrest two suspects, aged 29 and 37.

In an exclusive interview with Mirror from his secret hideout, Bishop Thomas Rikhotso narrated how difficult life has become after the incident. He claimed it all happened after police initially failed to protect him.

The number-one Apostolic Church bishop said he would be telling a different story if the police had heeded his call for assistance after he was forewarned about the arson attack to his home. "I phoned them at 20:00, but by 23:00, when three youths pounced, they had not yet arrived," said Rikhotso.

He said even after his two huts were gutted and he had told the police about the two young men he had identified, the police made heavy weather about the case and they did not arrest the suspects immediately. "I am very bitter that they arrived after my properties were burnt down," said the dejected cleric.

He says he finds it hard to understand why they did not help him in time, because the police station is not far from the village. "I tend to believe that some of the police took sides in this saga," he said.

"Why did it take them a long time to arrest the hooligans who are known and who were roaming the streets freely?’ he asked. He said he was satisfied that at last sanity prevailed and the police managed to do what they were employed to do, namely arrest suspects.

He said the incident has ripped his family apart as they no longer stay together. "My flock in church does not have a shepherd and this worries me a lot," he said.

He said he prayed that the real people behind the burning of the huts at Mapuve be found and his name be cleared.

Rikhotso’s ordeal started when 15 huts from ten families mysteriously caught fire in the village on separate nights. "Members of the community held meetings and said I was the one behind the mysterious burning of huts. This is unfair because some of them come to me and I help them through prayers," he said.

He said he served the community with all his heart and all he received in return was suspicion and the burning of his huts. He added that his huts were burnt by people who acted on mob psychology, that he was the one behind the burning of huts.

The spokesperson for the police, Supt Moatshe Ngoepe, confirmed that two suspects have been arrested in connection with the case. The two appeared in the Giyani Magistrate’s court last week and their case was postponed to November 29, pending further investigations. Ngoepe encouraged members of the community to come forward so the police would have a breakthrough as regards the burning of the other huts except the bishop’s.