The Southern California sheriff who accused a gun-toting man outside a Donald Trump rally last weekend of plotting an assassination attempt says it’s “strange” that a lawsuit was filed against him so quickly.
Vem Miller, 49, is suing Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco for defamation after he and his deputies publicly claimed they “probably” prevented a third assassination attempt on the former president’s life.
‘I find it strange. Probably the fastest lawsuit filed in history…the next business day,” Sheriff Bianco told DailyMail.com exclusively when asked about the legal action.
“You could say it was already prepared and planned,” he added. “It just keeps getting weirder.”
The sheriff speculated that it appears the entire ordeal was “staged” because he doesn’t understand why others don’t see the suspicion surrounding Miller’s actions before the meeting.
Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco told DailyMail.com it is ‘strange’ that Vem Miller filed a lawsuit against him so quickly
Miller did not respond to a request for comment from DailyMail.com about the lawsuit.
The Las Vegas resident went to a Trump rally in Coachella, California with a shotgun, a loaded handgun and a high-capacity magazine in his car.
He was stopped at a checkpoint on Saturday and arrested by the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office when several “red flags” showed up, including a fake license plate and multiple identification documents with different variations of his name.
Bianco said at a news conference and in media interviews that his team “probably” prevented a “third assassination attempt” on Trump.
Miller, who says he is a Trump supporter, was released after posting $10,000 bail on two separate firearms charges. He has a court hearing scheduled for early January.
He continues to deny that he was at the meeting to attack Trump.
‘Let me see if I’m right: The next business day a lawsuit was filed, with all these bizarre allegations and evidence of a man who had an unregistered car with fake license plates, and had multiple IDs in different names, including passports from different countries, with illegally loaded weapons,” Bianco said.
He then said that this man “tried to drive into a rally for a former president who has already had two attempts on his life.”
“Since no one in their right mind thinks what he did is okay, this is looking increasingly suspicious, as if it was staged as if ‘someone’ was possibly looking for attention,” the sheriff concluded.
Vem Miller (pictured) said he planned to take legal action against the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office after the sheriff said his team “probably” prevented a “third assassination attempt” on Donald Trump when they arrested him
Sheriff Bianco speaks during Trump’s campaign rally in Coachella, California on Saturday, October 12
Miller claims the guns were for protection and that he forgot California’s gun laws. He also says he has never shot a gun and is like a “preschooler” when it comes to firearms.
Miller’s lawsuit alleges that Sheriff Bianco fabricated his allegations to “create a narrative that could be seen as a ‘heroic’ sheriff saving presidential candidate Trump from a third assassination attempt.”
“Even after being informed by both the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation that they did not believe Miller was a threat and declined to interview him, Defendant Bianco continued to make ridiculous accusations against Miller and hold press conferences he perpetuated his misleading and false story. the lawsuit adds.
Miller argues in the legal filing that Bianco lied about submitting “fake VIP” credentials to attend the Trump rally at Coachella and insists that he “actually received expedited special access passes from the Trump 47 campaign.” ‘