Las Vegas man found with 3 guns outside a rally for Trump in California

A Las Vegas man was arrested for having three guns outside a California rally for former President Donald Trump on Saturday evening, according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s office.

“I probably did have deputies that prevented the third assassination attempt,” Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said at a press conference Sunday afternoon.

Vem Miller, 49, was booked at the John J. Benoit Detention Center for possession of a loaded firearm and possession of a high-capacity magazine. Miller was released from custody, according to the Riverside inmate search.

Deputies found illegal possession of a shotgun, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine, as well as multiple boxes of ammunition in his car, Bianco said.

Deputies searched the car after they noticed it was in “disarray” and that it had a “home made” license plate — one that Bianco said is representative of a far-right group that calls themselves “sovereign citizens” and do not believe in government. Bianco said the car had been sold to Miller, but had never been registered.

Miller was stopped at a checkpoint at the outer perimeter of enforcement around the rally, which Bianco estimated was about a quarter mile away from the venue, though he said he was not positive. Miller had presented a VIP pass and press credentials. Bianco said he could not confirm whether those were valid, as those would have been checked at a checkpoint inside the inner perimeter of security for the venue, which Miller never reached.

The incident occurred just before 5 p.m., which was before Trump spoke at the rally.

“I am glad that we’re not talking about this after we shot him,” Bianco said, referring to Miller. “We get to talk about it before, and no matter what, it’s all going to be speculation about what his intentions were getting there.”

Bianco also said that although his office has identified him as Vem Miller, he was putting an “asterisk” next to his name because the man was carrying multiple passports and I.D.’s with different names.

He said the sheriff’s office investigation is largely over. Miller is set to appear Jan. 2 at Indio Larson Justice Center in Riverside, California.

The investigation has moved to the Secret Service and FBI, though Bianco said his office was “actively engaged” with working with them.

“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.”

In response to questions of whether Bianco was being dramatic for saying that it may have been an assassination attempt, the sheriff said:

“If we are that politically lost, that we have lost sight of common sense and reality and reason that we can’t say, ‘Holy crap. What did he show up with all of that stuff for?’” Bianco said. “We have a serious, serious problem in this country, because this is common sense and reason.”

The event marks the third in a string of dangerous incidents against the former president. In July, Trump was struck by a bullet that grazed his ear at a rally in Pennsylvania. In September, a man was arrested at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida, for what the FBI said was an apparent assassination attempt.