George Zinn, the elderly man who falsely claimed he shot Charlie Kirk in the immediate aftermath of the Turning Point USA founder’s assassination and distracted police from looking for the real killer, has been sentenced to prison for child sex crimes and obstruction of justice.
Zinn cried in court after pleading guilty to two counts of second-degree felony charges of sexual exploitation of a minor and no contest to a third-degree felony charge of obstruction of justice, according to a report by the Hill.
Fourth District Court Judge Thomas Low reportedly sentenced the 71-year-old to two prison terms of up to 15 years for the child exploitation charges, and one term of up to five years for obstruction. He will serve the terms concurrently.
The parole board will ultimately decide how much time Zinn spends in prison, per Utah law.
Police found child sex abuse materials on Zinn’s phone last year, after detaining him at Utah Valley University on September 10.
Zinn had gotten himself arrested on the college campus, in the immediate aftermath of Kirk’s assassination, by claiming that he was the person who shot the conservative icon and father of two.
Video footage of Zinn being hauled away by police at Utah Valley University — which sparked mass confusion and additional chaos at the scene of the murder — quickly spread on social media, with many initially believing that the elderly man was the shooter.
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After his arrest, a detective asked where the gun was, to which Zinn replied, “I am not going to tell you where it is. I shot him, now shoot me,” according to the plea agreement document.
Moreover, Zinn admitted that he “diverted the attention of multiple law enforcement officers from their efforts to secure the scene and find the actual shooter,” court documents added.
Now, Zinn has been sentenced to prison for making the false claim — with the child exploitation charges being added on, as authorities discovered child pornography on his phone after arresting the 71-year-old amid his wild assertions on September 10.
Zinn had saved illegal images of children to his phone, shared them with others in chats, claiming they were photos of his daughters, and received similar images from other people, charging documents stated.
On Thursday, while reading a statement in court before his sentencing, Zinn did not mention Kirk’s name, but insisted, “I am not and will never be a danger to children or their parents.”
The elderly man went on to say that he has “every desire and commitment to change and lead a responsible and productive life,” adding, “Nobody wants to excel more than me.”
“I want to put the past behind me and move forward,” Zinn said before breaking down in tears and asking his attorney to take over for him.
Defense attorney Carly Madsen then told the judge that Zinn “is an interesting man who led a very difficult life,” adding that he has “never never fit in,” never received “the love or attention he deserved,” and “never got the help he needed.”
“It’s my hope in the future that Mr. Zinn is able to get the help he needs and the resources he needs,” Madsen added.
Before Kirk’s fatal shooting, Zinn reportedly had a reputation as a “gadfly,” who was oftentimes spotted at political events, protests, or any gathering that attracts cameras and attention.
As for the most consequential assassination in the United States since 1968, authorities have since named 22-year-old Tyler Robinson as Kirk’s murder suspect.
According to Robinson’s friends and former colleagues, the 22-year-old made jokes about how conservative figures will “catch a bullet one day,” mocked attempted Trump assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks for failing to “shoot straight,” once bragged about being able to hit a 400-yard shot, and began openly adopting left-wing stances after getting into a relationship with his transgender roommate.
Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.
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