Local police in the Coachella Valley arrested an armed man outside of former President Donald Trump’s rally on Saturday. The local sheriff’s office is now saying it may have been a third assassination attempt.
The Riverside County Sheriff’s Office shared in a press conference on Sunday afternoon that the arrest may have been connected to a third possible assassination attempt on the former president. Law enforcement said the attempt was potentially thwarted just minutes before it happened.
The local police said the man was stopped with a fake pass to Trump’s rally and a loaded shotgun, handgun, and high-capacity magazine.
“We probably stopped another assassination attempt,” Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said.
The suspect has been identified as Vem Miller, who police intercepted at a checkpoint about a half-mile from the rally entrance. Police said he had fake press and VIP passes.
“They were different enough to cause the deputies alarm,” Bianco said, according to the Riverside Press-Enterprise.
Miller is believed to be a member of a right-wing anti-government organization, according to Bianco. He also added that he was plotting to kill Trump.
The sheriff’s office noted that the arrest “did not impact the safety of former President Trump or attendees of the event.”
Miller has been booked for possessing a loaded firearm and a high-capacity magazine. He was released after posting $5,000 bail, police records obtained by the New York Post show.