COACHELLA: A possible third assassination attempt against the former United States President Donald Trump, was thwarted on Sunday at a rally in Riverside County, California.
The 49-year-old suspect, Vem Miller, made it through the first security checkpoint by claiming to have media credentials. However, Miller’s black SUV was stopped at a subsequent checkpoint after a deputy noticed that the car’s license plate was “obviously fake.”
Multiple unregistered firearms including a loaded handgun and shotgun were seized, as well as multiple drivers’ licenses.
“This incident did not impact the safety of former President Trump or attendees of the event,” the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement following the arrest. Miller was booked at the John J. Benoit Detention Centre.
Trump anti-immigrant rhetoric reaches new high
Markings on Miller’s license plate led Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco to believe that he 49-year-old individuals was part of a group that “claim to be sovereign citizens.” The sovereign citizen movement is a collection of anti-government radicals who believe they do not have to adhere to national authority.
“These accusations are complete bullshit,” Miller said, explaining to the Southern California News Group that he is a Trump supporter.
Despite not being as organised as other right-wing groups, the movement experienced growth during Trump’s presidency. The group has also gained members by appealing to QAnon, a political movement of sorts, which consists of people that believe in the conspiracy theory that Trump is waging a secret war against a faction of paedophiles known as the ‘Deep State’.
The movement alleges that the ‘Deep State’ are running a global child sex trafficking ring and sacrifice children in Satanic rituals. While the former president was hesitant to support the group at first, since launching his social media platform, Truth Social, he has promoted QAnon affiliated accounts over 800 times.
Obama slams Trump’s new ‘norms’
While most of the sovereign citizen movement’s anti-establishment practices involve a refusal to pay their taxes, with many examples of members unsuccessfully arguing their case in court, there have also been involved in violent acts.
In particular, one incidence in 2010 led to the death of two officers, who were killed by a man and his son in Arkansas.