An alleged Roma crime boss in Bulgaria under police protection since violent disturbances in his village at the weekend has been arrested, the government said Wednesday. \"Kiril Rachkov was arrested at 1:00 am (2200 GMT) this morning. He is accused of issuing murder threats,\" Veselin Vuchkov, deputy interior minister, said in parliament. The 69-year-old faces six years in prison if convicted. Nicknamed \"King Kiro\", he is widely suspected of being involved in a range of criminal activities, and locals in his home village of Katunitsa accuse authorities of turning a blind eye. Some 2,000 people rallied in Katunitsa last weekend after a van driven by one of his relatives hit and killed a local youth. Three empty houses belonging to Rachkov were set on fire and three police officers were injured. Nightly demonstrations have taken place around Bulgaria since, involving chants of anti-Roma, anti-Turkish and even Nazi slogans, and \"Roma Pride\" marches set for October 1 have been cancelled because of fear of clashes.