A Las Vegas man was charged with possession of a loaded firearm and a high-capacity magazine on Saturday after deputies assigned to a rally by former President Donald Trump in southern California's Coachella Valley stopped him at a checkpoint.
Federal law enforcement said Trump was not in danger.
The suspect, 49-year-old Vem Miller of Las Vegas, was stopped by deputies at 4:59 p.m. in a black SUV at the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Office.
Miller was found illegally possessing a shotgun, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine, local authorities said. He was arrested and booked at the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio.
Miller was released on $5,000 bail and awaits a court hearing. A federal investigation is ongoing.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said that Miller approached the perimeter of the rally before the event started and falsely claimed to have VIP access as member of the press corps, which he was not. Deputies spotted a number of "irregularities" including a fake license plate, Bianco said, prompting additional investigation.
In addition to the firearms, deputies found multiple passports with multiples names in Miller's vehicle in addition to multiple drivers licenses with different names, according to Bianco. He said the vehicle was not registered and the license plate appeared to be homemade, resembling those often used by members of anti-government "sovereign citizens" groups.
“We thank law enforcement for securing the rally site and helping ensure the safety of President Trump," Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for the Trump campaign, said in a statement to USA TODAY. "We are aware of news reports about the arrest and are currently monitoring the situation and gathering more information."
Will Vem Miller face additional charges?
It was unclear if Miller will face federal charges related to an attempted assassination of a political candidate, which would come from the Justice Department.
"The U.S. Attorney's Office, U.S. Secret Service and FBI are aware of the Riverside Sheriff's County Office's arrest on Saturday," the three federal agencies said in a joint statement statement. "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 was made at this time, the investigation is ongoing."
Bianco speculated that Miller's intention was to assassinate the former president.
"If you're asking me right now, I probably did have deputies that prevented the third assassination attempt," said Bianco, who is a staunch Trump supporter and endorsed the Republican nominee's presidential bid this summer.
Trump spoke Saturday night to a crowd of several thousand people at the Calhoun Ranch in Riverside County, just outside Coachella, around 5:30 p.m. − about half an hour after his remarks were scheduled to begin .
Miller's arrest comes after Trump has been the target of two recent assassination scares during the 2024 presidential campaign.
The most recent came in September when an armed man was found along a fence at Trump's golf course in West Palm Beach, Florida, while the former president played a round of golf. The first occurred in Butler, Pennsylvania in July, when a gunman fired at the president from atop a nearby building, striking Trump in the ear and killing one spectator.
People with information about this incident are encouraged to call Deputy Coronado at the Palm Desert Sheriff’s Station at 760-836-1600.
Paris Barraza is a trending reporter covering California news at The Desert Sun. Reach her at pbarraza@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @ParisBarraza.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Trump wasn't in danger from armed man at California rally, officials say
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