Video: Eupora Woman Wakes Up To No Front Door

EUPORA, Miss. (WCBI)-  When a tenant doesn’t pay rent it’s understandable when the landlord serves them an eviction notice. But that’s not what Marsha Johnson woke up to yesterday evening.

Empty hinges and no front door, that is what she found.

“I had just took some medicine, laid down on the couch, I heard something he was up in here knocking the hinges of the door, he said ‘I told you if you don’t pay I’m gonna knock them off.'” said Johnson.

Johnson was late paying her rent and wrote a letter to her landlord explaining why. She depends on her Social Security check each month to pay her rent and this month her check was going to be late.

“I was not trying to pay him, I was not trying to dodge him, I just let him know I couldn’t do it right then.” said Johnson.

Johnson’s landlord, Rusty Bowen, responded with a note saying her rent must be paid in full or she would be moved out. She also claims that Bowen came to the house and threatened to remove the front door. And on Sunday evening he followed through on that threat.

Numerous text messages, phone calls, and voicemails to Bowen went unanswered. Finally, when he did answer, all he would say is “no comment.”

Law enforcement have confirmed that what Bowen did is illegal. But the matter is out of their hands and must be handled in civil court.

For now, Johnson’s son, Marvin Conley, has helped move her belongings into storage, in fear that if they left them there they’d be stolen.

“I held my peace, she was frustrated with it she was scared, didn’t want to do nothing, she wanted to move so I helped her move her stuff out. You know you disrespected my mom, I just can’t have that from nobody.” said Conley.

According to Johnson, the residence had its fair share of problems.

“She got sink leaking, all that, sink leaking in the bathroom. When I had my washer dryer, he won’t fix nothing. If the refrigerator or stove turn up he won’t replace it you gotta replace it.. you don’t do that stuff like that.” said Conley.

Currently, Johnson is filing a case against Bowen and hopes to be able to move back in eventually.

“Basically we’re gonna file some charges on him, that’s gonna get done regardless, you know threatening, harassing, all that, we’re gonna do all that.” said Conley.