Can a landlord do this?

My friend owed 2 months worth of rent and was planning to just skip out and move to another apartment because it would be cheaper that way and his credit is already shot. He called up the moving company and they were moving his stuff while he stayed at a hotel for the night. The landlord came by the apt and actually shut the door and told the movers to leave. The movers called my friend on his cell and told him what was happening. The movers left and he will have to pay to get them back out there again because they charge by the hour. Can a landlord stop people from moving stuff out of your apt like that? Obviously the landlord knew he was bolting, but shouldn't he have handled things through the courts? What should my friend do now? The landlord doesn't want him back to the apt and he still has some things in there.