George Zinn, the Utah man who confused authorities by falsely confessing to the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, has now been charged with possessing child pornography, according to law enforcement officials.
Zinn, 71, faces four counts of sexual exploitation of a minor.
Investigators said they found more than 20 illicit images on his phone, depicting children as young as 5 in sexually explicit poses.
Highlights
- George Zinn, 71, falsely claimed he shot Charlie Kirk, causing confusion and delaying the arrest of the real suspect, Tyler Robinson.
- Police found over 20 explicit images of children aged 5 to 12 on Zinn's phone, leading to four counts of sexual exploitation against him.
- Zinn has a history of disruptive behavior at political events and past criminal charges, including bomb threats and protest arrests.
George Zinn, who falsely confessed to shooting Charlie Kirk, has been charged with possessing child pornography
Image credits: Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office
Authorities allege Zinn admitted to deriving sexual gratification from the material and told investigators his preferred victim age range was between 5 and 12.
The discovery followed the September 10 shooting at Utah Valley University, where Kirk, 31, was shot once in the neck.
As police rushed toward the scene, Zinn reportedly ran up to officers and shouted, “I shot him, now shoot me.”
He had no weapon, but his claims caused immediate confusion and temporarily redirected attention from the real suspect.
Zinn was arrested on the spot and booked on suspicion of obstruction of justice.
Police said that Zinn continued to claim that he shot Kirk as he was being led away in handcuffs, while telling the officer to “just shoot him.”
Image credits: X/leftoversushiii
They later determined that his statements delayed their ability to track the actual shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, who was captured more than 30 hours later.
After Zinn’s arrest, officers transported him first to campus police headquarters, where he refused to cooperate, and then to a hospital for medical treatment.
There, investigators said, Zinn admitted he had not pulled the trigger but wanted to draw attention away from the gunman. At other times, he told officers he hoped to become “a martyr for the person who was shot,” according to court documents obtained by Fox 13.
As part of the investigation, officers requested access to Zinn’s cell phone. When he handed over the device, police say he told them that he used it to view child sex abuse material.
“During a preliminary review of the phone, UCSO [Utah County Sheriff's Office] SVU [Special Victims Unit] Investigators did view over 20 images of children ranging from 5 to 12 years old in various stages of undress and sexual posing,” the sheriff's office said in a press release.
Image credits: Live Now from FOX
“There were several very graphic sexual text threads in which Zinn shared the images with other parties,” it added.
After the preliminary review, the police got a search warrant, and on Monday, detectives combed through the phone and uncovered the disturbing files.
Zinn is now being held in Utah County Jail.
Officials have found no evidence Zinn had any connection to Robinson, the accused gunman.
Robinson, 22, was charged with seven offenses, including aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, two counts of obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and violent offense committed in the presence of a child.
Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray said he will seek the death penalty.
Zinn admitted he lied about shooting Kirk to draw attention from the gunman
Image credits: Utah Governor's Office
Zinn has been a familiar presence in Utah political circles. Known locally as a ‘Gadfly,’ he has a history of attending political events and being ejected for trespassing.
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill told The Salt Lake Tribune that Zinn was a regular at public gatherings. “Almost every political event you can think of, there was always George somewhere in the background, listening,” Gill said
In 2013, Zinn was charged with threatening to place bombs at the Salt Lake City Marathon finish line. He later took a plea deal and received a sentence of probation.
However, after failing to meet the conditions of his probation, Zinn was ultimately ordered to jail for one year, with credit for time served.
Later in 2019, Zinn was one of five people arrested and taken to jail after a Salt Lake City protest against the Utah Inland Port Authority turned violent. Zinn was arrested for investigation of disorderly conduct and failure to disperse.