Officials of Trump administration say Secret Service investigates James Comey’s ‘86 47’ social media post

Homeland Security investigates former FBI Director Comey's social media post suggesting violence against President Trump.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said on Thursday (May 15, 2025) that federal law enforcement is investigating a social media post made by former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director James Comey. She and other Republicans suggest that the post is a call for violence against President Donald Trump.

In an Instagram post, Mr. Comey wrote “cool shell formation on my beach walk” under a picture of seashells that appeared to form the shapes for “86 47.”

Numerous Trump administration officials, including Mrs. Noem, said “Comey was advocating for the assassination of Donald Trump, the 47th President. DHS (the U.S. Department of Homeland Security) and Secret Service is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately,” Ms. Noem wrote.

Merriam-Webster, the dictionary used by The Associated Press, says 86 is a slang meaning “to throw out, to get rid of, or to refuse service to.” It notes: “Among the most recent senses adopted is a logical extension of the previous ones, with the meaning of ‘to kill.’ We do not enter this sense, owing to its relative recency and sparseness of use.”

The post has since been deleted. Mr. Comey subsequently wrote, “I posted earlier a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message. I didn’t realise some folks associate those numbers with violence. “It never occurred to me,” Mr. Comey added, “but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down.”

Mr. Comey's original post sparked outrage among conservatives on social media, with Donald Trump Jr. accusing Mr. Comey of calling for his father’s killing.

Current FBI Director Kash Patel said “he was aware of the post and was conferring with the Secret Service and its director.”