Man Arrested Immediately After Charlie Kirk Assassination Was Trying to Help the Shooter: Prosecutors
The first man arrested in the chaos following the assassination of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk has now been formally charged.
George Zinn, 71, was hauled away from Utah Valley University by officers moments after Kirk was gunned down last week. Authorities later clarified Zinn was not responsible for the killing, but he now faces charges of obstruction of justice — a second-degree felony.
According to court documents, Zinn approached police in the immediate aftermath of the shooting and began yelling, “I shot him, now shoot me.”
Utah Valley University Police Detective Michael Dutson wrote in an affidavit that he saw no weapon on Zinn, even as the man shouted his confession. When pressed on the whereabouts of the firearm, Zinn allegedly replied, “I am not going to tell you.”
“I shot him, now shoot me” - George Zinn
— Jennifer Coffindaffer (@CoffindafferFBI) September 16, 2025
There were too many people in that audience who wanted Charlie Kirk dead, including this political agitator and nut job.
Make no mistake, in the aftermath of a shooting, especially one in a venue like this, there is mass chaos. LE did a… pic.twitter.com/Hej7jHC5R5
Zinn later admitted to police that he had not shot Kirk at all but claimed he wanted to draw attention away from the real assassin. Officers say Zinn told them he was “glad” he made the false claim so the suspect could escape. He also reportedly stated he wanted to become a “martyr” for the slain conservative leader.
Following his bizarre outburst, Zinn was taken to a local hospital before being booked into Utah County Jail on Monday.
This isn’t his first run-in with the law. In 2013, Zinn was convicted of making a terroristic threat at the Salt Lake City Marathon. His rap sheet, stretching back to the 1980s, includes multiple arrests — often for trespassing.
The Old Man Arrested On Site Claiming To Be Charlie Kirk’s Shooter Admitted To Police He Lied To Distract From The Real Shooter!
— LIZ CROKIN (@LizCrokin) September 16, 2025
George Zinn, who police arrested and dragged out in cuffs with his pants down at Utah Valley University immediately after Charlie Kirk was fatally… pic.twitter.com/tYcFVkHpOo
Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill described Zinn as a political gadfly who frequently appeared at public events. “He’s a person who can be odd, and has those kinds of sometimes odd behavior challenges, but by and large, he’s more of a gadfly than anything else,” Gill told the Salt Lake Tribune.
Gill also noted that Zinn was no stranger to political confrontations, joking that Zinn would “give me a hard time for being a Dem.”
Zinn now sits in jail while the primary suspect in Kirk’s assassination, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, awaits formal murder charges.