Cops Arrest Man Allegedly Carrying Illegal Weapons Near Trump's Coachella Rally; suspect says he supports ex-president

California authorities say an arrest was made before former President Donald Trump's rally in California on Saturday.

At a news conference Sunday, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco provided an update on the suspect, 49-year-old Las Vegas resident Vem Miller, who was in illegal possession of a shotgun. hunting, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine.

Just before 5 p.m., Bianco said Miller approached the outer perimeter in a black SUV at the intersection of Avenue 52 and Celebration Drive, and gave every indication that his place was there and that he had been allowed to enter the VIP area of ​​the gathering.

Deputies were conducting a thorough assessment of arriving vehicles and immediately noticed some irregularities that appeared at Miller's home.

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Former Republican President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a campaign rally at Calhoun Ranch, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in Coachella, California. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

“What we do know is that he showed up with multiple passports in different names. An unregistered vehicle with a fake license plate and loaded firearms. If you ask me now, I “I probably had deputies who prevented the third assassination attempt,” he added. Bianco said.

Bianco continued and said the deputy noticed the interior of the vehicle was “pretty messy.” “The deputy also noticed that the vehicle had an obviously false license plate, which prompted our deputy to further investigate why the person was there and what they were doing.”

During the evaluation, Bianco said the deputy ultimately found multiple passports with multiple names, multiple driver's licenses with different names and that the vehicle was not registered and the license plate “was this which we in law enforcement would recognize as homemade and indicative of a group of individuals who claimed to be “sovereign citizens.”

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Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Coachella, California, United States, October 12, 2024. (Reuters/Mike Blake)

Sovereign citizens believe that they are not under the jurisdiction of the federal government and consider themselves exempt from U.S. law. They use various conspiracy theories and lies to justify their beliefs and activities, some of which are illegal and violent, according to the Sovereign Citizens Movement website.

“I knew this was going to happen. I don't care what political party he belongs to. Honestly, I think it's the stupidest thing in the world that we have to call something, and we call it political. It was crazy,” Bianco said of Miller.

“And from my perspective, in law enforcement, he was. It's that group. If, in fact, it turns out that he's part of the Sovereign Citizens Group, they're certainly considered a far-right group I wouldn't, Based on my personal beliefs, I wouldn't say it's an activist group It's just a group that doesn't believe in government and government control. They don't believe that the government and the laws apply to them in any way. They are people who are trying to do harm. “We prevented it,” Bianco continued.

Officials said Miller was taken into custody without incident and then booked into the John J. Benoit Detention Center on charges of possession of a loaded firearm and possession of a high-capacity magazine.

Miller, in an interview with the Southern California News Group on Sunday, said he was “shocked” to have been arrested and charged with trying to harm Trump, whom he supports.

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Former Republican President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a campaign rally at Calhoun Ranch, Saturday, Oct. 12, 2024, in Coachella, California. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

“These accusations are completely absurd,” Miller said. “I'm an artist, I'm the last person who could cause violence and harm to anyone.”

Miller also said he was never told why he was apprehended. About eight hours after his arrest, Miller said he finally had the opportunity to call an attorney and recounted his experience over the phone in front of an FBI agent and a member of the Secret Service, who were there to question him. Deputies then told him the interview had been canceled.

“I mean, as far as I'm concerned, there were at least 25,000 people who came into this place, after these deputies, with legitimate IDs and not carrying weapons. So I'm going to go from there,” Bianco said. . “I can tell you that none of the others, probably 50,000 people who showed up to this event yesterday, brought multiple passports with different names and weapons.”

A source close to the Trump campaign also told Fox News' Bill Melugin, and another told Fox News' Bryan Preston, that they did not believe it was an assassination attempt against Trump.

In a previous statement, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office said, “This incident did not impact the safety of former President Trump or event attendees. »

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“Right now, we are actively working with the Secret Service and the FBI to ensure that this individual is tracked and whatever information they can gather,” Bianco said. “I can tell you that from my point of view, from the point of view of state law enforcement, it was on the firearms charges that we arrested and indicted him, all whatever comes next will come from the federal government.”

The Justice Department, Secret Service and FBI also issued a joint statement to Fox News Digital and acknowledged the incident.

“The United States Attorney's Office, the United States Secret Service and the FBI are aware of the arrest by the Riverside County Sheriff's Office on Saturday. The United States Secret Service believes that the incident did not have an impact on protective operations and that former President Trump was not in any danger “The arrest was made at this time, the investigation is ongoing. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Secret Service and the FBI express their gratitude to the deputies and local partners who helped ensure the safety of last night’s events,” the statement said.

Fox News' Bryan Preston contributed to this report.