Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco headed a press conference Sunday evening after a man was arrested with illegal guns outside former President Donald Trump‘s rally venue in Coachella, California, a day earlier.
He offered more details on the incident where Vem Miller, a 49-year-old Las Vegas resident, was arrested after police found two unregistered guns in his vehicle.
Here is what we know about the timeline of the arrest and Miller.
Timeline of the arrest
Before Trump had arrived at the rally, Miller was arrested after police found ammunition boxes, a loaded handgun, and a shotgun in his vehicle, both of which were unregistered. They also found passports and driver’s licenses with different names. The license plate on the vehicle was fake as well, as the car was unregistered, though Bianco did say the car was sold to him.
Bianco said Miller was arrested because of the unregistered firearms, which are state-level charges. He was later released on a $5,000 bail.
According to Bianco, he attempted to enter Trump’s rally on Saturday night as a member of the media with VIP access but failed to produce any documentation indicating he had this kind of access.
Who is Vem Miller?
In the press conference, Bianco tied Miller to the sovereign citizens movement, a group that believes they are separate from the U.S. government and do not have to pay taxes or hold necessary identification, such as a driver’s license or registration for a vehicle.
A registered Republican, Miller holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, Los Angeles, and unsuccessfully ran for state assembly in Nevada in 2022.
He also runs the America Happens Network, a website with the motto, “Let’s rage against the mainstream media.”
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On his LinkedIn page, he describes himself as an “investigative journalist, documentary filmmaker, and a content producer” who has “seen our rights be taken, while the power of big government grows,” “seen small businesses and the middle class be squashed,” and “seen unlawful mandates and politicians acting like dictators.”
The U.S. Attorney’s office, Secret Service, and FBI released a joint statement on the arrest, saying it did not “impact protective operations” at the time and that Trump was never in any danger.
