A Republican activist from Idaho has received a barrage of death threats and abuse after he won free beer for reporting an illegal migrant to ICE.
Ryan Spoon, vice chairman of the Ada County Republican party was announced as the first winner of the Old State Saloon bar's giveaway in Eagle, Idaho.
Bar owner Mark Fitzpatrick won praise from Homeland Security after announcing on social media last month that if individuals provide evidence such as photos, videos, or alternative documentation to help ICE locate migrants without legal status, they qualify for a month of free beer.
The bar additionally boasted it 'may award multiple months of free beer' if several deportations occur.
Spoon was the first recipient of the award, after a friend tagged him in the bar's post on X pointing to a tip he had submitted earlier this year that led to a raid and deportation.
'They tagged me in the post and said 'hey Ryan Spoon already qualifies for this.''
Spoon told Daily Mail he has faced a barrage of abuse from liberals since his win was announced.
'This has really brought out the crazies,' he said. 'I have received numerous death threats or similar inferences of harm.'
The bar's scheme, which promises a month of free drinks to anyone whose ICE tip results in an arrest, has divided the country, with critics calling it reckless and dangerous, while supporters have rushed to defend it as a patriotic act of civic duty. Pictured are Ryan Spoon (left) and the bar's owner Mark Fitzpatrick (right)
Spoon, vice chairman of the Ada County Republican party in Idaho was made aware of the promotion after a friend tagged him in the bar's post on X nominating him. The bar is pictured
Spoon then made a trip to the bar where he was then endowed with his award and granted free beer from any of its 20 taps, after he submitted proof that he'd assisted ICE in making an arrest
Spoon has reposted several of the death threats he has been receiving online as a result of his participation in the campaign
Spoon said he had responded to a public call for action in January from ICE director Tom Homan, asking Americans to send in information if they knew about illegals in the US.
Less then 48 hours after President Donald Trump's inauguration, he tweeted out on X about legislator and state Rep Stephanie Mickelsen, after she publicly disparaged ICE's immigration policies.
'Attention, Mr Homan,' read Ryan's tweet, 'could you please send some illegal immigration raids to the businesses owned by Idaho's state Rep Stephanie Mickelson. She has been bragging about how many illegals her business employs. Here is a list of businesses to raid,' he continued, linking to an 'about' page on his rival Mickelsen's political website.
'You can report her, too!' he added.
When asked about his motivation behind sending in the tip Spoon said: 'I sent her public confession in so that she wouldn't get away with what she was doing. We finally have a president who has the b*lls to do something about it.
'We should uphold the laws we have.'
As Spoon's social media posts about contacting ICE rapidly garnered over 2,000 shares, he declared that 'sharing alone wasn't enough.'
He took further action by officially reporting Mickelsen's farming businesses to the ICE tip line and website.
The Department of Homeland Security shared Old State Saloon's post on X
State Rep Stephanie Mickelsen hit back at Spoon with an op ed in the Idaho Statesman earlier this year
Mickelsen hit back accusing the right winger of harassment. In an op ed for the Idaho Statesman on March 29 she wrote: 'Recognizing both the need for border security and the reality that critical aspects of our economy depend on foreign workers, I've become the target of intimidation tactics designed to silence me.'
However, ICE showed up at Mickelson's family run farm only three days after Spoon's tweet, where they located and arrested an illegal immigrant with a prior criminal record.
The Mickelsen Farms employee, Sajid Soto, had previously been charged with battery and drug possession in November 2022.
According to the Bonneville County Sheriff's Office, Soto admitted to choking his wife during an argument, and then whilst being held in the local jail, officers reported finding methamphetamine in his wallet. However he was released under the Biden administration and went to work at the farm.
Following the tip-off Soto was arrested and held at Nevada Southern detention center in Las Vegas before being deported.
Spoon says that reporting illegals is 'a patriotic act of civic duty.'
However as news of the bar's free beer offer spread, civil liberties groups claimed it was encouraging vigilantism and racial profiling and feared the scheme could lead to false accusations.
The Wassmuth Center for Human Rights, an Idaho group focused on combating hate and bias, condemned the bar's social media posts claiming the offer 'dehumanizes people and divides our communities,' and argued that tying someone's possible deportation to a month of beer, treats immigrants' lives and families like a game or contest.
This is not the first time the bar has gotten criticism. It previously sparked outrage when bar owner Fitzpatrick launched a 'Heterosexual Awesomeness Month' promotion in June 2024
Community organizers say some people are asking if they should avoid certain businesses, change their routines, or stay away from public events where strangers might take photos or videos to pass on as 'evidence' for a bar tab and report them to ICE.
But Ryan remained undeterred: 'We should uphold the laws that we have.
'That is part of having a civil and safe society. We have the right to establish borders for our country, we have the right to say who comes in and who doesn't.'
Conservative commentators have issued a surge of support for the bold stance celebrating it as a triumph against illegal immigration.
So much so, that even the Trump administration homeland security publicly amplified the now-viral offer.
The DHS issued a repost on X accompanied by a gif, flaunting their support for the initiative to its 2.5 million followers - a moment Spoon described as surreal.
'That was pretty cool,' he quipped. 'My first reaction was wow what a difference from a year ago.
'For all the negativity and for all the death threats, there's also a lot of support pouring in'.
The post Spoon shared in January directing ICE agents to Mickelson's farm
The Old State Saloon bar is a big fan of Trump and has a range of MAGA themed cocktails
Spoon says the backlash has provoked an influx of donations to the bar and visitors from across the United States.
'There have been dozens of people that have sent in donations to buy rounds of drinks for people in the bar,' he said.
However, this is not the first time the bar has amassed scathing criticism online, it previously sparked outrage when bar owner Fitzpatrick launched 'Heterosexual Awesomeness Month' promotion in June 2024 as a response to Pride Month.
He advertised discounts and complimentary drinks for straight men, women, and couples.
The bar is a big fan of Trump and served up MAGA-themed cocktails, including the Maga Rita, Trump's Survival Shot, and Biden's Last Fall Mudslide.
It also sells a variety of merchandise, including T-shirts emblazoned with the slogan 'Make America Straight Again.'
Fitzpatrick told Fox News: 'At Old State Saloon, we really aren't strangers to speaking out boldly about conservative Christian values and truth, and putting the truth out there.'
He added that he was well aware that speaking up in a world of 'deception' and 'evil' was likely to cause people to get 'really upset.'
Daily Mail has reached out to Fitzpatrick for further comment.
