A man is in custody after deputies found guns in his car near the rally site of former President Donald Trump in Coachella, Calif., on Saturday, according to Riverside County Sheriff’s deputies.
The man was identified as Vem Miller, 49, of Las Vegas.
Sheriff’s deputies stopped Miller at an interior check-point in Coachella, near the rally, and found he was illegally in possession of a shotgun, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine. He also had numerous passports and drivers licenses under different names and his SUV had fake plates, Sheriff Chad Bianco said at a Sunday news conference.
Bianco described Miller as a "lunatic" and member of Sovereign Citizens.
"They are certainly considered a far-right group," Bianco said. "I wouldn't say it's a militant group. It's just a group that doesn't believe in government and government control."
Nevada records show Miller is a registered Republican.
Miller also told the deputies at the checkpoint that he was a journalist and had a pass to attend the rally, Bianco said during a news conference Sunday.
Miller was booked into the John J. Benoit Detention Center on the state weapons counts and later released. He was given a court date to appear.
It is unclear if he faces any federal charges. Bianco said the FBI and Secret Service are investigating any possible threat to Trump and would handle that part of the case.
The sheriff’s department said the stop and arrest happened before Trump arrived at the venue.
Security has been heightened at Trump campaign events following two attempted assassinations. The first, at a July rally in Pennsylvania, left the former president grazed by a bullet and a rally supporter killed. The gunman was killed by a sniper.
In the second, Secret Service agents saw a man hiding in bushes at Trump’s West Palm Beach resort where he was playing golf. They later found an AK-style rifle and scope. The man is in federal custody.
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