Former Mafia Prosecutor Debunks Trump’s ‘86’ Hit Claim Against Comey

Former federal prosecutor Elie Honig has dismantled former President Donald Trump’s baseless claim that James Comey, the former FBI director, used a coded message to order a mob-style hit on him.

Trump alleged that Comey’s Instagram post of seashells arranged to read “86 47” was a mob-style threat, interpreting “86” as a command to “take out” the 47th president. Honig, speaking on CNN’s The Source on Wednesday, May 15, 2024, dismissed the claim as entirely fictional.

Prosecutor with Firsthand Mob Experience Rejects Trump’s Theory

Honig, who spent years investigating New York’s Five Families—Gambino, Genovese, Bonanno, Lucchese, and Colombo—stated that real-world mobsters never use “86” to mean murder. “I dealt with bosses, underbosses, consigliere, capos, soldiers, associates, all the way down the line,” he said. “Never, ever. Not once did I hear any real-world gangster use the term ‘86’ to refer to a murder or anything.”

Honig added, “I don’t know where the president’s getting this from. He said from some movie. They don’t use that term in The Godfather, The Sopranos, or Goodfellas. Maybe some old-timey movie, but that’s not reality.”

Trump’s Own Words Undermine His Claim

Honig also highlighted Trump’s own admission during an earlier interview with Kaitlan Collins on Wednesday. When pressed if he believed his life was in danger, Trump replied, “Probably, I don’t know.”

“Right there, that’s an acquittal,” Honig said. “Because prosecutors have to believe beyond a reasonable doubt that the victim believed that his life was in jeopardy.”

Indictment Does Not Rely on Mob Theory

The brief indictment against Comey, filed on Wednesday, includes charges of making a threat against the president and transmitting it in interstate commerce. However, the indictment does not cite Trump’s mobster argument. Instead, it states that “86” was a symbol a “reasonable recipient who is familiar with the circumstances would interpret as a serious expression of an intent to do harm to President Trump.”

Honig concluded that Trump’s theory is entirely baseless, stating, “But clearly there is nothing reasonable about Trump’s Mafia fiction—least of all any actual danger.”