A Las Vegas man was arrested with weapons and pretend IDs a few quarter mile from former President Donald Trump’s marketing campaign rally in Coachella Valley, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco stated Sunday.
However whereas the sheriff known as the arrest for a thwarted assassination try, the person, Vem Miller, advised a reporter he’s a Trump supporter who purchased the weapons for his personal security and notified police at a checkpoint that they have been within the trunk of his automotive.
So, who’s Vem Miller?
Miller, 49, is a registered Republican who holds a grasp’s diploma from UCLA, and ran for state meeting in Nevada in 2022. He misplaced within the major.
He advised the Las Vegas Overview-Journal on the time that he was operating as a result of “this country has been taken over by tyranny.” He stated he supported extra electrical automotive manufacturing in Nevada and photo voltaic vitality however would additionally need to deal with election safety points if he had been elected to workplace, together with strengthening voter ID legal guidelines and implementing paper ballots once more.
Miller additionally runs The America Occurs Community, whose motto is “Rage against the mainstream media.”
On his LinkedIn, he wrote, “For 20 years +, I have been working in the media as an investigative journalist, documentary filmmaker, and a content producer… I have seen our rights be taken, while the power of big government grows I have seen small businesses and the middle class be squashed. I have seen illegal mandates and politicians acting like dictators. I have also seen how the power of the money flows through politics and a political class that no longer works for We The People. “
Bianco said Miller appeared to be a part of or have an affinity for so-called sovereign citizens, a group of people who do not believe they are subject to any government statutes unless they consent to them.
In his interview with a reporter, Miller flatly denied that.
On Instagram, Miller has numerous pictures with various notable Republicans or figures who have endorsed former President Trump such as Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Colonel Douglas Macgregor and Stephen Miller, among others. He appears to have attended the Republican National Convention. Many of his posts are pro-Trump or anti Vice President Kamala Harris, anti-vaccine, or focus on culture war issues surrounding gender.
Why Miller was at the Coachella Trump rally
Miller said he received a special invitation to the Coachella Valley rally from the head of Clark County’s Republican Party. So far, no one at the Clark County Republican Office has responded to phone calls seeking comment.
What happened before the rally that led to Miller’s arrest?
Sheriff’s deputies assigned to Trump’s rally said a driver, identified as Miller, rolled up in a black SUV to a checkpoint at the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive around 5 pm on Saturday. There he was found to be in illegal possession of a shotgun, loaded handgun, and a high-capacity magazine, Bianco said. He added that Miller’s car had a fake license plate and was unregistered. Deputies also found multiple phone passports and driver’s licenses, Bianco said.
He was asked to pull over and step out of the car before he was handcuffed and had his vehicle “ransacked,” after a deputy stated he wished to retrieve the gun’s serial numbers to verify they have been legally bought.
Miller stated he purchased the firearms in 2022 for cover, after he began receiving dying threats. He had by no means fired them and stated he was unfamiliar with the distinction between Nevada and California’s gun legal guidelines.
He additionally denied presenting a press cross on the checkpoint and stated he solely had a ‘special entry pass.’
Was this one other assassination try focused at Trump?
In September, 58-year-old Ryan Wesley Routh was charged with making an attempt to assassinate Trump as the previous president performed golf. US Secret Service brokers discovered Routh with a high-powered rifle on Sept. 15 outdoors Trump Worldwide Golf Membership in Palm Seaside. Brokers noticed the barrel of his weapon within the bushes and fired at him earlier than he fled.
On July 13, 2024, at a rally close to Butler, Pennsylvania, Matthew Crooks shot at Trump with an AR-15–fashion rifle from a close-by rooftop as Trump gave a marketing campaign speech. Crooks hit Trump’s ear with a shot and killed one attendee whereas critically injuring two others earlier than Crooks was killed by Secret Service counter-sniper brokers.
After Miller’s arrest, Sheriff Bianco stated his division had prevented one other tried assassination of former President Trump.
At one level, Bianco known as Miller “a lunatic.”
However Miller disputes the declare.
“These accusations are complete bull—t,” Miller stated. “I’m an artist, I’m the last person that would cause any violence and harm to anybody.”
Mindy Robinson, who described herself as Miller’s companion at America Occurs, posted on X and Instagram on Sunday that the accusations towards Miller don’t make sense to her.
“There isn’t a universe (where) his intention was to kill Trump,” Robinson wrote. “He’s worked too hard in this movement to expose the Deep State and all the people against him.”
Miller was booked on the John J. Benoit Detention Middle in Indio for possessing a loaded firearm and high-capacity journal, authorities stated.
He was launched Saturday on $5,000 bail and is scheduled to seem on the Indio Larson Justice Middle on Jan. 2, 2025, in line with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Division inmate database.
Bianco stated if there are any additional costs, they’d come from the federal authorities. He stated the FBI, the Secret Service and the Sheriff’s Division are persevering with to analyze.
The Secret Service put out a quick assertion saying it was conscious of the arrest. “The incident did not impact protective operations. The Secret Service extends its gratitude to the deputies and local partners who assisted in safeguarding last night’s events,” the company stated.
