Trump supporter arrested at Coachella rally blasts 'corrupt,' anti-MAGA cop who cuffed him

The man arrested outside a Trump rally in Coachella, California, on Saturday issued a lengthy video statement denying that he posed any danger to former President Donald Trump or any rally attendees and claiming instead that he has been a victim of "corrupt officials operating under the color of law."

On Sunday, news spread on social media that a possible third assassination attempt on Trump had been thwarted after officers and deputies in Riverside County arrested Vem Miller, a 49-year-old Las Vegas resident, at a checkpoint about a half-mile from the event.

'There isn't a universe his intention was to kill Trump, he's worked too hard in this movement to expose the Deep State and all the people against him.'

According to reports, Miller had in his possession two loaded firearms — a shotgun and handgun — as well as multiple phony passes, including a press pass and a VIP rally pass.

"We probably stopped another assassination attempt," Sheriff Chad Bianco told reporters.

Miller was charged with possession of a loaded firearm and possession of a high-capacity magazine and released on $5,000 bail. He is scheduled to appear in court again in January.

Rather than wait for his day in court, however, Miller took to Rumble and posted a 75-minute video statement refuting the accusations against him and instead insisting that the arresting officer targeted him for his political views.

In the video, Miller claims he voluntarily notified officers at the security checkpoint about the firearms in his vehicle "as a courtesy."

"I told him that, in full transparency, 'I just wanted to let you know that in the back of my truck, I got, you know, two lawful firearms, purchased lawfully, registered lawfully, and I'm just letting you know that that's back there," Miller recalled.

Miller claimed he purchased the guns after receiving death threats but added that he has never fired either of them, even at the gun range. "Frankly, I am ... like a kindergarten student when it comes to guns," he explained. "I just have never shot a gun."

Furthermore, Miller claimed that, rather than phony passes, he had been issued "a special invite" to the Coachella rally as a Trump caucus captain and Trump team leader in Nevada. "I had a special entry pass directed to me, sent directly to me by officials within the Republican Party of Nevada," he insisted. "I was an actual invitee to that event."

Miller spent much of the video calling out the arresting officer for alleged misconduct and maltreatment. Miller said he overheard the officer, whom he did not name, calling him "a MAGAt and one of those Donald Trump people."

"At this point, it becomes very clear that this arresting officer's role was to make an example of a Trump supporter, was to persecute a Trump supporter, having nothing to do with the law," Miller continued.

Sheriff Bianco later described Miller as "a lunatic."

According to Miller, the "incredibly corrupt police officer" and his colleagues:

• left him roasting in the back of a police cruiser for at least an hour without access to medicinal supplements necessary to regulate his blood sugar;
• took him to jail even after Secret Service and FBI agents declined to interview him;
• denied him the opportunity to make a phone call as required by law;
• placed him in a holding cell with dangerous suspects such as an "MS-13 type of gangster guy" and someone who appeared to be a "mentally ill individual"; and then when speaking to the press later,
• "they literally created hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of liability slandering my name as a potential assassin."

He claimed that email documentation as well as police footage would corroborate his version of events. He likewise pledged to file a "major lawsuit" "to bring a lot of attention to corrupt officials operating under the color of law."

For its part, the Trump campaign seemed to downplay any threat Miller may have posed. "Sources close to" the campaign reportedly told Bill Melugin of Fox News that "there was no assassination attempt against Trump" at the Coachella rally.

"We’re told a man with a gun was arrested at the perimeter of the event without incident," Melugin tweeted on Sunday afternoon.

The Secret Service made no mention of a possible assassination attempt in its statement following Miller's arrest: "The incident did not impact protective operations. The Secret Service extends its gratitude to the deputies and local partners who assisted in safeguarding last night’s events."

Mindy Robinson, whom Miller described as his "business partner," rose to Miller's defense, posting to X on Sunday:

There isn't a universe his intention was to kill Trump, he's worked too hard in this movement to expose the Deep State and all the people against him. If he had guns in his car that were illegal, whooptie-f***ing do. As a pro-2A advocate, ask me if I give a s*** about a good guy with a gun in an unsafe s***hole like California. ...

I stand by Vem Miller....and I will get to the bottom of this bulls***. Watch me.

Blaze News made several calls to the Riverside County Sheriff's Office for comment during regular business hours on Monday but repeatedly received a recorded message stating the office was closed.

Hear more on the subject from the "Blaze News Tonight" team in the video below:

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