James Comey, the former boss of the FBI who became a target of Donald Trump, is being prosecuted for having threatened "the life and physical integrity" of the American president, by publishing a photo on Instagram in May 2025.

Published on: 04/28/2026 - 9:15 p.m. Modified on: 04/29/2026 - 07:22

Former FBI director James Comey, target of Donald Trump's vindictiveness, was indicted again on Tuesday April 28, this time for having threatened "the life and physical integrity" of the American president, according to the prosecution.

James Comey, 65, is targeted by two counts issued by a jury in North Carolina (southeast) for a photo published on social networks in May 2025, interpreted by the Trump administration as a "threat" towards the president.

“I am still innocent, I am still not afraid and I still believe in an independent federal justice system,” the person reacted in a video shared on the Substack platform.

The announcement of his indictment, made by the acting Minister of Justice, Todd Blanche, comes three days after shootings at the press gala in Washington, the main suspect of which was charged on Monday, including attempted assassination of the American president.

Donald Trump fired his Minister of Justice Pam Bondi at the beginning of April, following in particular a series of pitiful failures by his ministry to criminally prosecute targets expressly designated by him. He appointed to fill this strategic position the number two in the ministry, Todd Blanche, who is also one of his former personal lawyers.

Ten year prison sentence

“Threatening an attempt on the life of the President of the United States will never be tolerated by the Department of Justice,” Todd Blanche said at a press conference, stressing that each of the two charges carried a maximum sentence of ten years in prison.

A federal judge in November quashed two indictments guided by the American president against James Comey and against the Attorney General of the State of New York, Letitia James, due to the illegal appointment, according to her, of the prosecutor who had initiated these proceedings.

Also read: Comey, Brennan, James... Who are the targets of Donald Trump's legal revenge?

James Comey was accused of having lied under oath by denying, in response to a question from a senator, having authorized his deputy to be quoted anonymously in the media on sensitive investigations conducted by the FBI.

This time, he is being prosecuted in connection with an incident linked to the publication of a photo on Instagram in May 2025, in which American authorities, including Donald Trump, claimed to see a threat targeting the Republican president.

“Intent to harm the President of the United States”

In his publication, then withdrawn, James Comey shared a photo showing shells forming the message "86 47" in the sand, the first number sometimes being used to signify the wish to drive away, or even kill, someone, the second possibly referring to Donald Trump, 47th President of the United States.

Also read: Did the former FBI director call for the murder of Donald Trump with a photo of seashells?

This image “would be interpreted by a reasonable recipient aware of the circumstances as a serious expression of intent to harm the President of the United States,” the Justice Department said in a statement Tuesday.

James Comey – brutally fired by Donald Trump in 2017 while investigating suspicions of foreign interference – then explained himself in a message on Instagram. "I earlier posted a photo of seashells I saw this morning while walking on the beach, and I felt it was a political message. I didn't realize that some people associated these numbers with violence. I never had that in mind, but I oppose all forms of violence, and so I removed the post," he wrote.

The American federal authorities then announced an investigation by the Secret Service, responsible for the protection of high-ranking personalities, into this "threat" formulated according to them against Donald Trump.

“It means assassination, it’s written in black and white. It’s true that he wasn’t very competent, but he is competent enough to know what that means,” the American president reacted during an interview with Fox News. “He calls for the assassination of the president,” he insisted, calling James Comey a “crooked cop.”

During his first press conference as interim minister on April 7, Todd Blanche justified the pursuit of targets designated by Donald Trump. “People say the president wants to go after his political enemies. No, the president says it again and again, he only wants justice,” he said. “There are thousands of investigations and prosecutions underway in this country currently and it is true that some concern men, women and entities with whom the president has been in conflict in the past, and whom he considers that they must be the subject of investigations”, admitted Todd Blanche.

With AFP

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