U.S. Park Police launch probe after '8647' appears on Washington Mall
June 12 (UPI) -- Federal authorities launched an investigation into a possible threat against President Donald Trump after "8647" -- a number combo used to signify opposition to Trump -- was found imprinted into the grass on the National Mall in Washington.
The probe into the numbers, distinguishable as brown grass along a significant section of the Mall to the east of the World War II Memorial, is being led by the U.S. Park Police with a spokesperson saying tests were being conducted on samples of the grass to determine the cause of the discoloration.
A source in law enforcement told CNN that the Secret Service would join the investigation once a suspect had been identified.
The White House strongly criticized those responsible.
"Anyone who engages in or endorses political violence or assassination culture must be condemned in the harshest terms possible," said White House spokesman Davis Ingle.
The Department of Interior, which is responsible for the Mall, called it "deranged vandalism" that it said was unacceptable.
"Any threat against the President is taken very seriously by the Department, and our U.S. Park Police will investigate this incident and hold those responsible accountable," said a spokesperson.
The incident came three days before large crowds were expected in the vicinity Sunday for a UFC contest to mark Trump's 80th birthday and only three weeks before celebrations in the capital marking the 250th anniversary of the declaration of independence.
The numbers, with "86" slang for canceling, dismissing or getting rid of something that when placed next to the number of the presidency -- in Trump's case 47 -- are alleged to take on a malevolent connotation.
That belief forms the basis of an ongoing criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey after he posted a beach photo online of shells alleged to have been purposely arranged to display "8647" in 2025.
In April, a federal grand jury in North Carolina handed down a two-count indictment accusing him of knowingly and willfully making a threat to take the life of the president and sending a communication in interstate commerce that contained a threat to injure a person.
Comey denies the charges.
A June 1 ruling by a federal judge in an unrelated case brought by a protest group seeking to block the National Park Service from taking down a flag displaying "8647" from outside a federal courthouse in Washington found that the numbers constituted free speech and were not by themselves a threat.
The ruling said that the defendants' counsel failed to "offer any description of the agency's actual reasons for concluding that plaintiff's specific display of the flag posed a true threat -- as opposed to conveying a political message urging President Trump's removal from office."
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This story was originally published June 12, 2026 at 7:37 AM.