Billy the Kid’s tombstone vandalized

The grave of Billy the Kid, one of America's most notorious criminals, was vandalized in New Mexico on June 16. 

Don Sweet, owner of the Billy the Kid Museum in Fort Sumner, New Mexico, told the Huffington Post that someone managed to topple over his 2,000 pound tombstone that sits in the Old Fort Sumner Cemetery.

"They turned the headstone over and it broke some of the concrete. The cemetery has never been bothered before," Sweet told Huffington Post. 

Billy the Kid, born William Henry McCarty, Jr. in 1859, became a famed American criminal in the Wild West, according to Fox News. According to legend, the Kid killed 21 people, although it is generally believed that he actually killed between four and nine people.

The International Business Times noted that Billy became entrenched in the culture of New Mexico after moving there as a child with his mother.  It was there that he learned to speak Spanish and learned Mexican customs. After his mother died Billy was raised by Mexican-American ranchers. Billy was shot and killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett on July 14, 1881 at the age of 21. 

Authorities told the local media that they are tracking several leads, but the criminals remain on the run. Police are offering a $1,000 reward for any information leading the arrest of the thieves and the safe return of the stole property. Fitting for a man who once had a $5,000 bounty on his head. 

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