US law enforcement agencies will investigate a post by former FBI Director James Comey on social media containing the number 8647, which could be a call for the assassination of President Donald Trump.
“Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump. DHS and Secret Service is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X.
The number 8647 in the image in the post is made up of seashells. As Reuters explains, in American slang, 86 can be used to mean “to kick someone out of a bar for drunkenness or disorderly conduct,” Merriam-Webster’s dictionary says it also means “to kill,” but much less commonly.
47 coincides with Trump’s serial number as president in US history. Acting FBI Director Kash Patel said his agency was in contact with the Secret Service about the post and would “provide all necessary support” in the investigation. Due to outrage from Trump supporters, Comey deleted the post.
“I didn’t know that some people associate these numbers with violence. It never crossed my mind, but I am against all violence, so I deleted the post,” he explained.
Comey was head of the FBI from 2013 to 2017, first under President Barack Obama and then under Trump.
On July 13, 2024, Trump survived an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania. The politician was shot at by 20-year-old Thomas Matthew Crooks. One spectator was killed and two were injured during the attack. Trump himself was only grazed in the ear, the attacker was killed.
On 15, September 2024, while Trump was playing golf in West Palm Beach, Florida, Secret Service agents noticed a gun sticking out of the bushes and opened fire. The suspect managed to escape but was soon apprehended.
