LEXINGTON, Mo. -- A startling discovery inside a vacant house sparked a federal investigation, and KCTV5 News learned that it involved two powerful men in a small Missouri town.

A viewer's tip prompted the investigation.

KCTV5 News spent days tracking down the facts and the main players involved, but they continually avoided talking to KCTV5 News until Thursday.

Just hours before KCTV5 News was set to air this story, one of the men at the center of this investigation agreed to sit down to tell us his side to the strange story.

The investigation began at a white house in Lexington, on 11th Street, just north of the courthouse. The doors were locked. Neighbors said it been vacant for months, but what police found hiding behind the walls prompted federal authorities to come to town, and it sparked an investigation involving two of the most well-known men in Lexington, high-powered attorney Robert Langdon and City Administrator Don Borgman.

"They're the ones our kids are supposed to look up to," said Misty Clayton.

Clayton lives across the street from the white house and she had no idea what was going on right under her nose. A few weeks ago, someone called police about people living in the home, and when officers arrived, they said they found 10 illegal immigrants staying there.

"I had no idea there were even people living in the house," Clayton said.

Immigration authorities were called and took six adults into custody.

So who owns the white house? According to the county assessor, it's a corporation called Historic Properties. According to the Secretary of State's office, the owner of Historic Properties is Langdon. KCTV5 News went to Langdon's house and his office and left messages in both places. KCTV5 News found someone driving a pickup registered to him, but he didn't want to talk to KCTV5 News.

KCTV5 News discovered Langdon recently bought a vineyard with Borgman. It sits right outside of town off Higginsville Road. State records show both men have a stake in the vineyard, and it was where those illegal immigrants worked, planting grapes. Soon after the bust, Borgman handed in his resignation as city administrator. KCTV5 News made numerous attempts, without success, to get a hold of Borgman at his home in Wellington, Mo.

Then, Thursday night, Langdon sat down with KCTV5 News to tell his side of the story.

Langdon said he "had no way of knowing" that the workers were illegal immigrants.

"I didn't even know who they were," Langdon said. "All we did was rely on our vineyard manager to hire people who were legal."

Langdon said after he bought the vineyard last year, he hired a company called Cotta Vineyard Management and Consulting from the St. Louis area to hire the workers and take care of the grapes. Langdon said they were receiving a 25-percent tax credit from the state to build the winery with the condition no illegal workers were used.

"We signed an affidavit that the workers were legal, and the one thing we told Cotta is to make sure you have your paperwork, which he had because there aren't any charges against him or us," Langdon said.

KCTV5 News confirmed Thursday through multiple sources that at the time, the U.S. Attorney's Office was not bringing charges against Langdon, Borgman or Cotta. As for why those illegal immigrants were staying in a home Langdon owns, he said the motel they were staying at was in such bad repair, he offered them his renovated vacant home.

The past few weeks have been hard on Langdon, and amid all the accusations, he's packing up and moving out of Lexington.

"I'm done. I'm going to sell it, and I'm out. I'm selling all my buildings and leaving town. I can't put my family through what they've been through," Langdon said.

As for the vineyard, what was supposed to become a tourist attraction has a doubtful future.

"We worked two hard years on it, put in $2 million in it already, and it's disheartening," Langdon said. "(It's a) very hard period in my life right now but we'll move on."

Langdon spoke on behalf of Borgman and said he resigned as city administrator on the advice of his attorney. Langdon plans to relocate his family to the Northland.

As for the vineyard, the grapes have been growing for about a year, and if no one buys it up, it could be a big blow to tourism in the area.