The man who claimed he shot Charlie Kirk was sentenced to prison for two counts of child exploitation.
George Zinn, 71, was arrested on September 10 at Utah Valley University after claiming he pulled the trigger on the conservative influencer.
Zinn later admitted to causing a distraction to ‘draw attention from the real shooter,’ who officials alleged is 22-year-old Tyler Robinson.
‘I shot him, now shoot me,’ he reportedly told police before they arrested him.
After obtaining a search warrant, police found ‘graphic’ sexual photos of children on Zinn’s phone, reported The Salt Lake Tribune.
Investigators found ‘over 20 images of children ranging from 5 to 12 years old in various stages of undress and sexual posing.’
Authorities also uncovered ‘several very graphic sexual text threads in which Zinn shared the images with other parties,’ according to police.
Zinn pleaded guilty to the child exploitation charges on Thursday and no contest to one charge of obstruction of justice.
George Zinn, 71, was pleaded guilty on Thursday for two counts of child exploitation
Zinn was initially arrested for claiming her shot Charlie Kirk, but police later found sexual photos of children on his phone
Conservative influencer Charlie Kirk was shot and killed at a Utah Valley University on September 10
The Tribune said Zinn appeared ‘frail’ and ’emotional’ during his sentencing.
‘I wish the court to know I am not and will never be a danger to children or their parents,’ he said.
Zinn claimed the photos were part of ‘chatroom dialogue’ and were ‘public access.’
‘I want to put the past behind me and move forward,’ he said, crying.
He faces a maximum sentence of 15 years behind bars including two one-to-15-year sentences for second-degree felony exploitation and a zero to five-year sentence for obstruction.
The length of his terms will be decided by a parole board. They will be served simultaneously.
Zinn was known to show up at various political events across Utah. He had multiple arrests in his past.
His defense attorney, Carly Madsen, described him as an ‘interesting man’ who ‘never fit in.’
After Kirk was shot, Zinn reportedly screamed out ‘I shot him, now shoot me’
Tyler Robson, 22, was charged with aggravated murder in connection with conservative influencer Charlie Kirk’s death
‘[He] never really got the love or attention he deserved. And never got the help he needed, resources that would that helped him years ago,’ she said.
‘It’s my hope in the future that Mr. Zinn is able to get the help he needs and the resources he needs.’
Kirk was shot in the neck at a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University in September and declared dead several hours later.
Robson was arrested after a 33-hour manhunt for Kirk’s killer.
Robinson was charged with aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm, two counts of witness tampering and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury and obstruction of justice in connection with Kirk’s death.
