Former FBI Director James Comey has been indicted for the second time in recent months. This time, he faces charges over an Instagram post showing seashells on a North Carolina beach with the numbers “86 47” arranged in them. The Trump administration claims this was a threat against President Donald Trump‘s life.
Comey was fired by Trump in May 2017 while the FBI was investigating possible connections between Russia and Trump’s presidential campaign, according to NBC New York. The two have been in an open fight ever since. Their relationship was difficult from the beginning, especially after Comey refused Trump’s request at a private dinner to promise personal loyalty to the president.
Comey said he thought the numbers in the photo were just a political message, not a call for violence. He took down the post quickly after posting it, writing, “I didn’t realize some folks associate those numbers with violence” and “I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”
The indictment raises serious questions about political prosecution
The Secret Service questioned Comey right away after Trump administration officials said he was calling for Trump’s assassination. Trump is the 47th president. Trump himself said Comey knew “exactly what that meant.” Comey’s lawyers have said he “vigorously denies” the charges and will fight them in court.
Many people are asking if the Trump administration is using the Justice Department to go after political enemies. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said the case against Comey is like other threat cases the department handles with regular people.
But Comey’s indictment comes when the Trump administration is being criticized for how it handles cases against political opponents. Former intelligence officials have warned about Trump’s dangerous behavior in the past.
People are arguing about what the numbers in the Instagram post actually mean. Merriam-Webster says “86” is slang that means “to throw out,” “to get rid of,” or “to refuse service to.” But Trump says the number means “kill” in this situation. Comey’s first indictment was thrown out in September when a judge decided the prosecutor who brought it was appointed illegally.
The current indictment charges Comey with knowingly making a threat to take Trump’s life and harm him physically, and with sending a threat across state lines. However, the indictment does not show proof that Comey knowingly threatened Trump, especially since Comey has said the opposite.
FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau spent almost a year looking into the Instagram post. According to Mediaite, Patel repeated what Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said about spending 11 months on the case. He said this length of time is normal because such cases “take time.”
He explained, “Our investigators work methodically, they are career agents, career prosecutors who work these matters. They call the balls and strikes in the field as they see fit, pursuant to the facts of the case and the law. They took that information and made a presentment to a grand jury, a jury of their peers in the district in which the alleged crime took place.
Then he added, “And that grand jury spoke. And that grand jury returned a two-count indictment against James Comey, James Comey allegedly threatened the life of the president of the United States.” Patel has been reshaping FBI leadership and investigations since taking control of the bureau.
Comey was indicted on two counts in the Eastern District of North Carolina for making a threat against the president and sending a threat across state lines. This is his second indictment. In September, a grand jury in the Eastern District of Virginia indicted him for allegedly lying to Congress and blocking a congressional investigation in 2020.
Two months later, a judge dismissed those charges after ruling the U.S. Attorney who signed the indictment was illegally appointed. Comey’s legal team said in a statement they will fight the charges in court and look forward to clearing his name and defending the First Amendment. Comey himself has said he is not afraid and still believes in the independent federal judiciary.
Published: Apr 29, 2026 10:46 am