WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US law enforcement agencies are investigating an alleged assassination threat against President Donald Trump by former Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) director James Comey, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Thursday.

The announcement by Noem came after Comey made a now-deleted post on Instagram that showed an image of “86 47” spelled out in sea shells, with “86” being slang for kill and Trump the 47th president.

“Disgraced former FBI Director James Comey just called for the assassination of @POTUS Trump,” Noem posted on X.

“DHS and Secret Service is investigating this threat and will respond appropriately,” she said.

Comey later said on Instagram that he posted “a picture of some shells I saw today on a beach walk, which I assumed were a political message.”

“I didn’t realize 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.

Trump was wounded in the ear during an assassination attempt that took place while he was holding a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania in July, and has faced other threats.