The FBI is weighing an arrest and perp walk for Comey — and suspended an agent for refusing to help, sources say – CBS News

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The FBI is weighing an arrest and perp walk for Comey — and suspended an agent for refusing to help, sources say

By Jake Miller, Updated on: October 3, 2025 / 9:50 PM EDT / CBS News

The FBI is considering carrying out a “showy” arrest and perp walk of the agency’s now-indicted ex-Director James Comey, and has suspended an agent who refused to participate in the plan, three sources familiar with the matter told CBS News.

Comey was charged last week with lying to Congress and obstructing a congressional proceeding, an unprecedented move that came after President Trump publicly pressured Attorney General Pam Bondi to look into his longtime adversary. A grand jury voted to indict him on Sept. 25 and hours later, Comey was issued a summons directing him to appear in federal court in northern Virginia for an Oct. 9 arraignment. His lawyers agreed to bring him to his arraignment, two sources said.

But on the same day as his indictment, FBI leadership discussed hauling Comey in instead of waiting for the ex-FBI chief to report to court on his own, a source knowledgeable about the conversions told CBS News.

The source told CBS News that leadership asked for “large, beefy” agents to conduct an arrest of Comey “in full kit,” including Kevlar vests and exterior wear emblazoned with the FBI logo. It was suggested that Chris Ray, a supervisory special agent in the violent crimes division of the FBI’s Washington Field Office, would be able to put together the kinds of agents who fit the bill, the source said.

Ray refused to participate in this plan, believing it would be inappropriate and highly unusual for a white-collar defendant like Comey, according to the source. He was then suspended for insubordination.

The FBI is now actively working to put together a team to arrest Comey between now and his court appearance on Thursday, but other FBI supervisors have also refused to cooperate, said a source knowledgeable about the conversions and a law enforcement source familiar with the situation. The expectation is that the FBI will eventually find somebody.

CBS News has reached out to the FBI for comment. Comey’s lawyer, Patrick Fitzgerald, declined to comment to CBS News.

Reuters was first to report that an FBI agent was sidelined for refusing to help with a perp walk.

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