An elderly man who was arrested at Utah Valley University (UVU) last week after allegedly falsely confessing to the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk is now also facing multiple child pornography charges as well as obstruction of justice, according to police reports, Breitbart reports.

George Zinn, 71, was witnessed on the UVU campus shouting at law enforcement, claiming, “I shot him. Now shoot me,” moments after Charlie Kirk was fatally shot in front of an audience. This outburst initially led campus authorities and the public to believe that the shooter had been apprehended, while the actual suspect was fleeing the scene.

Authorities transported Zinn to the police station, but he soon suffered a medical incident and was taken to a hospital. There, he reportedly confessed to making his false claim in order to distract officers and allow the true shooter to escape detection. Zinn was subsequently booked into the Utah County Jail and charged with obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony.

Zinn is noted for his history of attending and occasionally disrupting or being arrested at a variety of public events, ranging from political rallies to film festivals and protests.

Salt Lake County Sheriff’s Office

According to a Utah County Sheriff’s Office press release, while Zinn was interviewed at the hospital, he admitted to using his phone to view and distribute child sexual abuse material and acknowledged that incriminating images might be present on his device. Authorities later secured a search warrant for his phone and, upon review, reportedly discovered over 20 images depicting children aged 5 to 12 in sexually explicit poses. Investigators also uncovered message threads where Zinn is alleged to have shared these images with others and confessed to deriving personal gratification from such material, indicating a preference for children within that age range.

Zinn now faces four further counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, all classified as second-degree felonies, and remains in the Utah County Jail. Authorities state there is currently no evidence suggesting Zinn collaborated with the shooting suspect.

The shooter was later identified and turned in by his family. His arrest was corroborated by DNA evidence linking him to the murder weapon and other materials found at the crime scene, as confirmed by the FBI.