Kristi Noem, who is in charge of Homeland Security, said on Thursday that the police are looking into something James Comey, who used to be the head of the FBI, posted online. She and other Republicans think it might be telling people to be violent towards President Donald Trump.

Comey wrote on Instagram, "Cool shells on the beach!" with a picture of shells that looked like the numbers "86 47."

Some people who worked with Trump, like Noem, said that Comey was talking about killing Trump. Noem said that the police and Secret Service know about this threat and will do something about it.

Merriam-Webster dictionary says that "86" is slang. It means to "throw out" or "get rid of" something. It can also mean to refuse to serve someone. The dictionary says that recently, some people have started using it to mean "to kill," but this meaning is new and not very common.

The post is now gone. Comey later wrote, "I put up a picture of shells I found on the beach. I thought it was just a nice picture, but some people think the numbers look like a message about violence. I didn't know that."

James Comey's message made some people on social media, especially those who support the Republican party, very angry. Donald Trump Jr. even said that Comey wanted people to kill his father.

Kash Patel, who is in charge of the FBI now, said he knew about the message. He is talking to the Secret Service and its boss about it.

James Blair, who works at the White House, said this job is happening at a difficult time because Trump is visiting the Middle East.

Blair wrote on X that Jim Comey's message is like telling terrorists and enemies to hurt the President while he is visiting the Middle East.

Comey was the head of the FBI from 2013 to 2017. Trump fired him when he was president because the FBI was looking into possible links between Russia and Trump's 2016 campaign. Comey also wrote a very popular book about his life called “A Higher Loyalty.”

He writes crime stories now and is telling people about his new book, “FDR Drive,” which comes out on Tuesday.