Fake Kirk shooter arrested for child sexual abuse material

Utah County authorities booked George Zinn, an elderly man who pretended to be the shooter of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, for obstruction of justice and sexual exploitation of a minor, the sheriff's office said on Tuesday. Zinn was accused of four counts of the sexual charge, a second-degree felony, after investigators allegedly found more than 20 sexually exploitive photos of children on his phone. Zinn also shared some images with other people in text threads that were very graphic, the sheriff’s office said. He is considered legally innocent until proven guilty in court.

Shortly after Kirk was shot and killed on the campus of Utah Valley University last week, Zinn yelled that he was the shooter, according to the sheriff’s office. Police took him into custody as a suspect, but Zinn later allegedly said he had lied to mislead authorities and allow the shooter to escape, according to the sheriff’s office.

Did Zinn make a plan beforehand to help the shooter? Investigators found no evidence that the two colluded, according to the sheriff’s office.

Dig deeper: Read my report on the heavy charges the suspected shooter faces.