California sheriff on why man arrested outside Trump's Coachella rally was released: 'Fact of life'
Riverside County, California Sheriff Chad Bianco joined 'Fox & Friends' to discuss the latest on the arrest and why he was released on bail after law enforcement discovered multiple guns and passports in his possession.
Vem Miller, the man arrested for possessing firearms outside former President Donald Trump's rally in Coachella, California, this weekend, claims he is a Trump supporter and has an extensive media and political history.
While some observers speculated he was a threat to the rally or even Trump himself, Miller says he routinely carries his firearms in the back of his truck and never intended to hurt the former president.
Here are four key pieces of information about Vem Miller.
1. Miller claims to have an extensive media history.
Miller released a video statement more than an hour long on Rumble overnight Monday. In it, he lays out his political and professional history and says he never intended to harm Trump.
Vem Miller, the man arrested at Trump's rally in Coachella, says he did not intend to hurt the former president. (Vem Miller)
Miller told Fox News in a Sunday interview that he has been a 30-year member of the media and started work after graduating from high school. He said he worked on music videos and TV shows with major artists, and launched America Happens Network to combat "censorship" in the media.
He added in his video statement that he worked as a professional music video director from 2001 to 2008 and worked with artists like DMX, John Maher, and even Jerry Seinfeld for the "Bee Movie" music video.
Miller says his career then moved toward television, and he received contracts to work with the History Channel, Discovery Channel, Netflix and others.
"Again, I have contracts and paperwork to verify everything I've said is accurate and true," he said.
Miller did not immediately provide evidence of those contracts when contacted by Fox News Digital on Monday.
Vem Miller was arrested at a Trump rally in Coachella, California, on Oct. 12, 2024.
2. Miller ran for office in Nevada as a Republican.
State records in Nevada show Miller ran for office unsuccessfully in 2022. He is a registered Republican and was running in the party primary for a seat in Nevada's General Assembly, landing in third place with 1,337 votes.
He claimed in his video statement that he had received an "entry pass" for Trump's California rally from the Nevada Republican Party. The Nevada GOP did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
"I can prove that I had a special entry pass sent directly to me by officials within the Republican Party of Nevada," Miller said in his video statement. "I was an actual invitee to that event."
Miller says he was apprehended when he declared his firearms to security at a checkpoint to get into the Coachella rally. Police arrested him, but he was later released on a $5,000 bail.
3. He says he has met Don Jr. and Eric Trump.
Miller claimed in his video statement that he has attended numerous rallies for Trump and met some of the former president's family members.
"I would say in the last four years, I've been to a countless number of Trump rallies and Trump events," Miller said. "I have been, and this is again verifiable, pretty much this far away from the former president, to the point that I could touch him," he said, indicating a short distance with his hands. "I've talked to Don Jr., I've talked to Eric Trump. I know a lot of people within the Trump family and extended family."
Miller went on to describe himself as a "Libertarian more than anything else."
Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally in Coachella, California, on Oct. 12, 2024. (REUTERS/Mike Blake)
4. He claims he received death threats due to media work.
Miller says he began receiving death threats from anonymous individuals in 2022, leading him to purchase his firearms.
He repeatedly expressed concern about his safety in his video statement, and he offered details about the threats against him.
"Due to the content I produce, around 2022 I started getting multiple death threats," Miller said. "Until this point, I had never owned a firearm. And these death threats were either emailed to me with what I would call heinous pictures depicting violence – Scrabble pieces were mailed to me one by one spelling the word, ‘dead,' and so I became concerned."
He says the concern led him to purchase a Glock handgun and a shotgun. He added that he has never fired either weapon and has never been to a shooting range with them.
Miller says he made a habit of notifying police or security at Trump events that he had the firearms in the trunk of his vehicle.
"It was simply a common courtesy to police," he said. "Every time I've been to a Nevada rally and notified the police it's been a non-issue and they thanked me for notifying them.
He added that he felt he made a "critical mistake" in forgetting that he was in California when he declared the firearms at the latest rally.
Fox News' Stepheny Price and Bryan Preston contributed to this report
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