‘Get rid of’ Donald Trump? Former FBI Director's cryptic ‘8647’ Instagram post sparks row - Here's why

US law enforcement officials on Thursday said they were investigating a social media post made by former FBI Director James Comey, which had an image saying ‘8647’. The now-deleted Instagram post sparked fear among supporters of Donald Trump, who said that it could be interpreted as a threat to the President.

What did James Comey post?

Comey, dismissed by Trump during his first term in office, had shared the photo showing seashells arranged to form the number “8647.”

“Cool shell formation on my beach walk,” Comey had captioned the post.

However, he deleted the post later following an uproar from Trump supporters. He said he had assumed it was merely a "political message."

“I didn't realize some folks associate those numbers with violence. It never occurred to me but I oppose violence of any kind so I took the post down,” Comey said.

What did the Secret Service say?

The Secret Service, which is responsible for protecting the president, said it was aware of Comey's post but did not assess its meaning.

"The Secret Service vigorously investigates anything that can be taken as a potential threat against our protectees. We are aware of the social media posts by the former FBI director and we take rhetoric like this very seriously. Beyond that, we do not comment on protective intelligence matters," Secret Service spokesperson Anthony Guglielmi said in a statement, as per a report by Reuters.

US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, whose department oversees the Secret Service, condemned Comey and accused him of inciting violence against 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,” she said in a post on X.

FBI Director Kash Patel said the bureau is coordinating with the US Secret Service.

“We are aware of the recent social media post by former FBI Director James Comey, directed at President Trump. We are in communication with the Secret Service and Director Curran. Primary jurisdiction is with SS on these matters and we, the FBI, will provide all necessary support,” he said in an X post.

What is the meaning of 8647?

The number 86 is a slang in America that is generally used to refer to “get rid of,” “eject,” or “remove” someone or something. It can also be used as verb meaning to throw somebody out of a bar for being drunk or disorderly.

The number 47 may be a reference to Donald Trump, who is the 47th President of the US.

This interpretation has fuelled speculations among Trump supporters and many others that it was meant to ‘eliminate’ the President from his office violently, including assassination.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary says on its website that one recent meaning of the term was “to kill” but that it had not adopted that “due to its relative recency and sparseness of use.”

Who is James Comey?

James Comey was inducted as the seventh Director of the FBI on September 4 2013 and continued in the position for more than three years.

Early in his first term, in May 2017, Trump fired Comey, who as FBI director had been leading an investigation into the Trump 2016 presidential campaign's possible collusion with Russia to help Trump get elected.