Trump in new assassination attempt as gunman arrested outside Coachella rally
Donald Trump appears to have faced yet another threat to his life as a man with fake VIP credentials was taken into custody after a shotgun, a high-capacity magazine and a loaded handgun were found in his vehicle during a rally last weekend found.
Vem Miller, 49, was taken into custody after being stopped at a checkpoint near the former president’s rally in Coachella, California, on Saturday.
Local law enforcement officials claimed the incident was “likely” a third assassination attempt — after Trump was shot in the ear in Butler, Pennsylvania, in July, and an armed suspect pointed a gun at him in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September.
But a source close to Trump’s campaign played down the threat, telling DailyMaill.com that the gunman was captured before he posed any danger.
Donald Trump will meet in Coachella, California on Saturday, October 12
“This incident had no impact on the safety of former President Trump or event attendees,” the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office emphasized in a statement.
But Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco told Southern California News Group, “We probably stopped another murder attempt.”
Bianco, a known Trump supporter, told the outlet that Miller presented fake VIP and press passes at the checkpoint, which led to the search.
He will hold a press conference on Sunday at 6 p.m. eastern time to inform the public about the incident.
Miller was found to be in illegal possession of the firearms, magazines and ammunition when his black SUV was checked by police on Saturday.
He was booked into the John Benoit Detention Center, posted his $10,000 bail — $5,000 for each of the two crimes for which he was charged — and was out of custody as of Sunday.
Miller has his next court appearance scheduled for Jan. 2.
“There was no assassination attempt in California yesterday,” a source close to Trump’s campaign told DailyMail.com. “A man at a perimeter checkpoint had a gun, but there was no incident.”
The latest news comes as Trump’s protective detail remains on high alert following two assassination attempts on the former president.
At his outdoor rallies, the former president and 2024 Republican nominee has been speaking behind a more obvious rim of bulletproof glass since the July 13 assassination attempt on him in Butler, Pennsylvania.
Thousands showed up for Trump’s campaign rally in Coachella, California, on Saturday
The first occurred at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13, when 20-year-old gunman Thomas Matthew Crooks struck Trump in the right ear before being shot dead by Secret Service. The would-be assassin killed a protester and seriously wounded two others with his gun while sitting a few hundred yards from where Trump spoke that day.
Just two months later, on August 15, Ryan Wesley Routh, 58, was arrested in Florida as he fled the scene where the Secret Service shot at him.
Routh reportedly pointed a gun at Trump while he was golfing at his club in West Palm Beach before the former president’s security detail saw the barrel of the gun and deterred a second assassination attempt.
