James Comey, former FBI director, appears in court after indictment over threatening US President Donald Trump
James Comey turned himself in on two charges, including threatening the life of the president and transmitting threats across state lines.
Former FBI director James Comey has appeared in federal court in Virginia, a day after being indicted over a social media post that prosecutors allege threatened US President Donald Trump.
Mr Comey turned himself in on two charges, including threatening the life of the president and transmitting threats across state lines.
The former FBI director did not speak during a brief court appearance.
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US Magistrate Judge William Fitzpatrick of the Eastern District of Virginia ordered Mr Comey released and did not impose any special conditions.
His next court appearance is expected in North Carolina, where a federal grand jury returned the indictment on Tuesday.
Members of Mr Comey’s family entered the courthouse shortly before the proceeding began.
Mr Comey has said he is innocent and will fight the accusations in court.
Mr Comey listened in court on Wednesday as Judge Fitzpatrick read aloud the charges, which carry a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
The charges relate to a post Mr Comey made on Instagram last May showing seashells arranged on a beach to form the numbers “86, 47”.
The number “86” is a slang term originating in the restaurant industry that can mean to “get rid of” or throw someone out.
“47” is a possible reference to Mr Trump as the 47th US president.
The indictment alleged that a reasonable recipient of the message would interpret it as a threat to Mr Trump.
Mr Trump told reporters on Wednesday that he viewed “86” as a “mob term”.
“People think of it as something having to do with disappearing but the mob uses that term to say when they want to kill somebody,” Mr Trump told reporters at the White House.
Asked whether he thought the post put his life in danger, Mr Trump responded, “Probably. I don’t know”.
Mr Comey deleted the post shortly after it was published, saying he viewed it as a political message and was not aware that the number could be associated with violence.
Mr Comey, a longtime Mr Trump foe, has now faced two criminal cases from the Justice Department during Mr Trump’s second administration.
A previous case accusing him of lying to Congress was dismissed by a federal judge.
