A man arrested at a security checkpoint near Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's California rally on Saturday faces gun charges after he was found in possession of loaded firearms, multiple passports, and a fake license plate.
Las Vegas resident Vem Miller was stopped in a black SUV by sheriff's deputies around 5 p.m. local time Saturday -before Trump had taken the stage--and taken into custody without incident, according to the sheriff's office. Miller was released on $5,000 bail soon after being charged with possession of a loaded firearm and a high-capacity magazine, both misdemeanors.
According to Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, Miller tried to gain VIP access to Saturday’s rally by falsely claiming he was a member of the press. When he drove up, deputies flagged various “irregularities,” such as a bogus license plate normally used by so-called “sovereign citizens” who believe, among other things, that the federal government is illegitimate.
A search of Miller’s car turned up the two firearms, plus multiple passports and driver’s licenses in various names. "The incident did not impact the safety of former President Trump or attendees of the event," the sheriff's office said in a press release.
Miller is a former journalist who has worked as a music video director and now runs the "America Happens Network," a website that features conspiracy-minded videos about 9/11 being “an inside job” and the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an interview with The Independent, Miller said it wasn't an assassination attempt, calling himself an "artist" producing content for the Trump campaign, but he has ties to Project Veritas founder James O'Keefe.