Man who falsely claimed to be Charlie Kirk shooter charged with obstruction of justice
Sep 22, 2025, 12:44 PM | Updated: 1:02 pm
George Zinn is pictured in a 2013 booking photo. (Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office)
(Salt Lake County Sheriff's Office)
SALT LAKE CITY – A man who investigators say falsely claimed to be Charlie Kirk’s shooter was charged with obstruction of justice.
George Zinn, 71, was charged with one count of obstruction of justice by the State of Utah in Fourth District Court.
According to court documents, Zinn was present on Sept. 10 when Kirk was shot on campus at Utah Valley University during an event hosted by Turning Point USA.
A detective with UVU’s police department was positioned approximately 15 feet behind Kirk, “but did not have an unobstructed view of the event,” court documents said.
At approximately 12:23 p.m., the detective reportedly heard a loud bang, screaming from the crowd, and Kirk’s security team stated he had been shot. The detective saw Kirk on the ground with a wound to his neck, “but did not see where the shot had come from.”
Court documents stated the detective went into the crowd to tell them to get back, when Zinn approached the detective and said, “I shot him, now shoot me.” Court documents outlined that Zinn repeated this phrase throughout the situation.
At approximately 12:25 p.m., Zinn was handcuffed and taken into custody. Zinn reportedly told the detective he would not disclose where the gun was located, and the detective searched Zinn and the surrounding area, but no firearm was found.
The detective notified dispatch that a possible shooter was in custody, and a patrol vehicle was needed at the back of the venue.
Court documents stated Zinn and the detective walked through angry crowd members to a patrol vehicle with “two other persons who appeared to be officers in plain clothing.”
Zinn was taken to the UVU police department where Zinn identified himself and the detective read his Miranda rights.
No formal interview was conducted, as Zinn reportedly requested an attorney. He was then taken to a hospital due to chest pain where he was monitred by a UVU Officer “who had been part of the security team at UVU at the time of the incident.”
Zinn was later booked into the Utah County Jail on suspicion of obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony, according to UVU Police Detective Michael Dutson.
“Subsequent investigation determined that Defendant (Zinn) did not shoot Mr. Kirk. Defendant’s statements that he did so diverted the attention of multiple law enforcement officers from their efforts to secure the scene and find the actual shooter,” court documents stated.
Related: Man who lied about being Charlie Kirk’s killer possessed child sex abuse material, police say
