A 49-year-old Las Vegas man illegally armed with multiple guns who was arrested Saturday at a checkpoint outside Trump’s Coachella rally and later released is scoffing at the claim that he was there to assassinate former President Donald Trump, according to multiple reports.
Authorities with the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department arrested Vem Miller just before 5 p.m. at a checkpoint located at the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive in Coachella after a search of his unregistered black SUV revealed he had loaded handgun, a shotgun and a high-capacity magazine.
The 49-year-old was booked at the John J. Benoit Detention Center on suspicion of possessing the firearms and the magazine before being released on $5,000 bail on Sunday.
During a press conference Sunday, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said deputies became suspicious of Miller after noting fake license plates on the vehicle and multiple passports with different names inside his vehicle.
Bianco, a Trump supporter who has said, ‘It’s time we put a felon in the White House,’ and has been rumored to be planning a run for governor of California in 2026, also suggested at the press conference that his agency likely stopped a third attempt on Trump’s life.
“If you’re asking me right now, I probably did have deputies that prevented the third assassination attempt,” he said.
Miller, a registered Republican with a master’s degree from UCLA, told the Southern California News Group that he was surprised he was arrested and called the sheriff’s assassination accusations “complete bull—t.”
“I’m an artist, I’m the last person that would cause any violence and harm to anybody,” the 49-year-old said during the interview.
Miller, who describes himself as journalist and runs The America Happens Network, a site with the motto “Rage against the mainstream media,” ran for the Nevada State Assembly in 2022 and lost in the primary.
He told SCNG that he’d bought the firearms in 2022 after receiving death threats, had never fired them and was unaware of the difference between Nevada and California gun laws.
The Las Vegas resident also claimed to be a Trump caucus captain who had a “special entry pass” for the rally given to him from the head of the Clark County Republican Party and that when he was approached by deputies at the checkpoint, he informed them that he was lawfully carrying weapons in his trunk.
During Sunday’s press conference, Sheriff Bianco referred to Miller as a “lunatic” that appeared to be a member or at least an admirer of so-called sovereign citizens, a typically far-right ideology that suggests government institutions and authorities have no real power, The Los Angeles Times reported.
In his interview with SCNG, Miller denied the sheriff’s accusation.
Asked by the press if he was speculating about Miller wanting to kill Trump, Sheriff Bianco called it “common sense” that someone trying to bring fake identification and firearms to a political rally was hoping to hurt people.
“We know that we prevented something bad from happening,” Bianco said. “It’s irrelevant what that bad was going to be.”
Despite the sheriff’s insinuations about Miller’s intentions and political leanings, federal authorities have not pressed any charges, nor do they believe the former president was in any danger.
In a statement released Sunday by the Department of Justice, officials said:
“The U.S. Attorney’s Office, U.S. Secret Service, and the FBI are aware of the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office arrest on Saturday. The U.S. Secret Service assesses that the incident did not impact protective operations and former President Trump was not in any danger. While no federal arrest has been made at this time, the investigation is ongoing. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, and FBI extend their gratitude to the deputies and local partners who helped ensure the safety of last night’s events.”
