A man renting out a historic home in Monmouth, Illinois is facing theft charges after the owners of the Wyatt Earp birthplace say he left the place in shambles instead of fixing it up.
The sign on the front door keeps visitors to the Wyatt Earp Birthplace Museum from entering. But they're not the only ones who can't get in.
"It's been barricaded. The front door has a lot of items in front of it," said Melba Matson.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the house is owned by Melba and her husband Bob, who now live in Mason City, Iowa. They rented it out to Kelly Semande, with the understanding he would fix the place up and one day buy it.
"It's been hard, we trusted him and he was a veteran. We were going to give him a chance. But we didn't know the status of the house until we saw it on Facebook that it was a mess," Melba said.
The Matsons say Semande gutted the place, selling items inside that don't belong to him.
"A former landlord told us he'd bought our water heater and our refrigerator. And he was selling other items also from our house," Melba added.
Semande told us previously that he was asking for donations to fix up the historic house.
"Just to clean it up and repair it, probably approximately $8,000. To maintain it, another $2,000," said Kelly Semande.
We later learned Semande was being evicted, and police eventually arrested him for felony theft.
"We have had to close it down because nobody can get in and nobody can live there. And it's just a real problem right now," explained Melba.
With Semande out, the Matsons say they hope a group of historians will come forward and help make the needed repairs.
Semande appeared in Warren County Court on the theft charge Tuesday, October 27, 2015; the next hearing in the case was set for November 12.