This week, former Director of the US’s Federal Bureau of Intelligence (FBI), James Comey, was indicted on federal charges in the state of North Carolina after posting a picture of seashells arranged to spell “86 47” on Instagram last May. Prosecutors have accused Comey of threatening US President Donald Trump.Who is James Comey, what are the charges against him, and what does the term “86 47” he used in his post signify? We explain.Comey has been in Trump’s crosshairs since the latter’s first presidential term (2017-21). As FBI Director (2013-17), Comey had led an investigation into whether Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign had colluded with Russia to get Trump elected. Trump fired Comey in May 2017 and since then, Comey has been an outspoken critic of the US President.In May 2025, Comey posted a photo on Instagram with the number “86 47” formed by seashells on a beach. The caption read: “Cool shell formation on my beach walk”.Although Comey later deleted the post, a number of Trump supporters had taken offence, even interpreting it as a threat against him. Comey, on his part, said that he was unaware that his message could be associated with violence. “I didn’t realise 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,” he said.Also read | Trump administration dismisses Attorney General Pam Bondi, Army chief Gen. Randy George: Why were they removed?On Wednesday, Comey appeared in federal court in Virginia on two charges: threatening US President Donald Trump, and transmitting a threat in interstate commerce. The second charge refers to sending threatening communications across state lines — including via the internet or social media — to cause bodily harm to an individual, to damage their reputation or property, or for extortion.While the court ordered Comey’s release and did not impose any special conditions, the former FBI director is expected to appear in court next in North Carolina, where a federal grand jury indicted him on Tuesday. Comey maintained that he is innocent and will fight the accusations in court.Story continues below this adThis comes on the back of an earlier, separate criminal case being pursued by the US Department of Justice against Comey that fell apart last year. In that case, Comey was charged with obstruction and whether he had lied to the Senate Judiciary Committee during his 2020 testimony about the Russia investigation. Comey had denied the charges, and a federal judge had dismissed the case in November 2025.The latest indictment has reinforced accusations against the Trump administration of targeting the President’s perceived political enemies of the president with criminal prosecution.According to the online Merriam-Webster dictionary, the origins of ‘86’ lie in soda-counter slang from the 1930s. It refers to an item being sold out. “There is varying anecdotal evidence about why the term eighty-six was used, but the most common theory is that it is rhyming slang for nix,” Merriam-Webster notes.In a couple of decades, however, the usage gained currency beyond the soda counter. By the 1950s, the word underwent a functional shift: from being used as a noun, it became a verb meaning “to refuse to serve a customer”, later gaining the extended meaning of “to get rid of” or “to throw out”. It was particularly used in reference to refusing further bar service to inebriated customers.Story continues below this adIn recent years, however, it has come to take on the meaning of “to kill”. Merriam-Webster does not offer much explanation on this usage, citing “its relative recency and sparseness of use”.NewsletterFollow our daily newsletter so you never miss anything important. On Wednesday, we answer readers' questions.SubscribeIn a piece for the St. Louis magazine, George Mahe suggested that the term might have had military roots. According to him, its origins could lie anywhere between a reference to the F-86 fighter jet during the Korean War (1950-53), Article 86 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice referring to going on absence without leave (AWOL), or even military shorthand: rotary phones had T on the 8 key and O on the 6 key, so to throw out (TO) something was to 86 it.Pointing to the abundance of possible origin stories, Mahe concluded: “I don’t really know, but there are about 86 theories.”Comey had said that his Instagram post was meant to be a political message. Trump supporters had interpreted it as a coded call for violence against the US President. The second part of the message — “47” — was understood to be a reference to Trump being the 47th President upon his return to the White House in January 2025.Story continues below this adIn such cases, intent matters. Legal experts believe the case’s outcome will depend on whether prosecutors can prove that Comey actually intended to threaten Trump. And as Sam Sifton of The New York Times noted in a newsletter: while some acts of violence really do follow ugly political speech by their perpetrators, “it’s important to look at when the government chooses to prosecute for threatening speech, and why”.