The US Department of Justice has again indicted former FBI Director James Comey.
Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Tuesday that Comey has been charged with threatening the life of US President Donald Trump. Blanche said Comey also faces a charge of making an interstate threat to kill the president.
Comey, a frequent critic of Trump, responded on Tuesday by saying he remained innocent and unafraid after the indictment. “I’m still innocent, I’m still not afraid, and I still believe in the independent federal judiciary, so let’s go,” he said in a video statement.
What do we know so far?
CNN reported earlier Tuesday that the indictment is tied to an Instagram post Comey made last May showing shells on a beach arranged to form the numbers “86 47.” Trump is the 47th US president; some Republican critics interpreted the post as a reference to killing or “taking out” Trump.
This would be the second time the Justice Department under the current administration has charged Comey. In September, he was indicted on charges of making a false statement to Congress and one count of obstruction; he pleaded not guilty. Those charges were dropped in November after a judge found the appointment of the prosecutor, Lindsey Halligan, was unlawful.
[Image: United States President Donald J. Trump speaks to the media as he and his granddaughter Kai Madison Trump depart the White House for the Ryder Cup on Friday, September 26, 2025. Caption: Trump has previously characterized Comey as a ‘untruthful slime ball’. Image: Aaron Schwartz/Sipa USA/picture alliance]
Comey was fired by Trump in 2017
Comey served as FBI director from 2013 to 2017 and has been an outspoken critic of Trump. He was dismissed by Trump in 2017 over his handling of Hillary Clinton’s emails, though Democrats at the time argued the firing was connected to the FBI’s investigation into the Trump campaign’s ties to Russia.
The Justice Department under the second Trump administration has faced pressure from the president to pursue prosecutions against his political opponents. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche previously served as Trump’s personal attorney.
Edited by: Srinivas Mazumdaru, Dmytro Hubenko