Ex-FBI Director Comey Indicted Over Social Media Post
Former FBI Director James Comey, one of President Donald Trump’s most prominent political adversaries, has been indicted for a second time by the Trump administration over a beach photo he posted on social media last year that officials claim was a coded threat against the life of the president. He is expected to surrender to federal authorities on Wednesday.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche announced that a federal grand jury in the Eastern District of North Carolina indicted Comey on two felony counts related to threats against the life of the president. If convicted on both counts, the 65-year-old could face up to 20 years in federal prison.
The charges centre on a photo Comey posted on Instagram in May last year showing seashells arranged to form the numbers “86 47.” The number 86 is slang for eliminating something or someone, while 47 corresponds to Trump’s designation as the 47th president. Trump was blunt about his interpretation, saying “a child knows what that meant. It meant murder.”
Comey deleted the post the same day, saying he did not realise some people associated those numbers with violence. In a video response on Substack, Comey said “I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let’s go.” His lawyer said they would fight the charges and look forward to vindicating both Comey and the First Amendment.
This is the second attempt by the Trump administration to prosecute Comey, who served as FBI Director from 2013 until Trump fired him in 2017 during the agency’s investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.
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He has since become one of Trump’s most vocal critics. The first prosecution attempt, on charges of lying to Congress, was dismissed last year after a judge ruled the prosecutor handling the case had been unlawfully appointed.
The new indictment comes weeks after Trump dismissed Attorney General Pam Bondi, with Blanche, previously Trump’s personal lawyer, now leading the Justice Department.
It was filed three days after Trump was evacuated from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner following an alleged assassination attempt. The case has been assigned to US District Judge Louise Flanagan in North Carolina.