A Missouri woman was arrested Friday morning and charged in connection to the attempted foreclosure scheme of Graceland, former home to music great ElvisPresley, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a press release Friday. Friday is also the anniversary of Presley's death.
Lisa Jeanine Findley — who the DOJ said has gone by aliases such as Lisa Holden, Lisa Howell, Gregory Naussany, Kurt Naussany, Lisa Jeanine Sullins and Carolyn Willaims — was charged in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.
The 30-page criminal complaint charges Findley with aggravated identity theft and mail fraud.
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"As alleged in the complaint, the defendant orchestrated a scheme to conduct a fraudulent sale of Graceland, falsely claiming that Elvis Presley’s daughter had pledged the historic landmark as collateral for a loan that she failed to repay before her death," said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, in a statement.
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The statement continued: "As part of the brazen scheme, we allege that the defendant created numerous false documents and sought to extort a settlement from the Presley family. Now she is facing federal charges. The Criminal Division and its partners are committed to holding fraudsters to account."
U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee Kevin Ritz, who has spent most of his life in Memphis and has been nominated by President Joe Biden for a federal judgeship, called the scheme "brazen" and said the DOJ "will vigorously prosecute anyone who commits financial crimes or identity theft."
Three foreclosure notices were published by Naussany Investments beginning on May 6, citing a public auction for the historic Memphis estate. On May 22, the foreclosure sale was halted by Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins after a Shelby County Chancery Court hearing.
According to an affidavit in the charging documents, Findley created Naussany Investments and "used, without lawful authority, (Lisa Marie Presley's) name and signature, as well as the names, signatures and notary seals of other real persons to create fake loan documents purporting to memorialize (Lisa Marie Presley's) 2018 agreement to borrow $3.8 million from Naussany Investments and pledge Graceland as collateral for the loan, including a fake promissory note and deed of trust."
Investigators looked at records provided to them by Microsoft that showed the email for Naussany Investments was created on July 14, 2023.
Findley, who was arrested in Kimberling, Missouri, began threatening to foreclose Graceland for not repaying the purported $3.8 million loan soon after creating the email, according to the affidavit. On July 28, 2023, officials say a "creditor's claim" package was sent from Kimberling to Lisa Marie Presley’s business manager in Woodland Hills, California. The claim was captioned to be filed in the California Superior Court.
Officials tracked down Findley through a PO Box that she rented in the name of one of her aliases, Lisa Holden. A phone number attached to the creditor’s claim was also linked to Findley, officials say.
A number of other packages were sent under numerous aliases from the same post office in Kimberling, according to officials. Some of those packages included sworn affidavits that officials allege were fraudulent.
The charging complaint, according to documents, was originally filed under seal Thursday, citing concerns that "the defendant may flee, conceal evidence or seek to influence persons cooperating with the investigation if they learn of the investigation's existence" and that the investigation was ongoing.
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Prior to the foreclosure sale happening, Riley Keough — an actress and daughter of Lisa Marie Presley — filed a lawsuit in court to halt the sale.
Following a hearing on May 24, Memphis-based law firm Morton & Germany filed the court-ordered injunction bond. Morton & Germany is representing Riley Keough and The Promenade Trust, which controls ownership of the Graceland estate. Morton & Germany filed the countersuit regarding the sale and said the foreclosure claims were fraudulent.
Numerous emails, riddled with grammatical errors, were sent to attorneys and media outlets, including The Commercial Appeal. On May 25, The CA received a second email from someone purporting to be Kurt Naussany — one of the aliases officials say Findley used.
That second email was written in Spanish and claimed the alleged Naussany Investments firm was the "Yahoo Ring Leader of Nigeria." The New York Times and The Daily Memphian also reported receiving similar emails from Kurt Naussany. The emails to other media outlets were written in different languages and contained slightly differing details, however, still claimed responsibility for predatory and fraudulent behavior.
According to the DOJ, all names associated with Naussany Investments & Private Lending LLC were actually Findley, and "after the scheme attracted global media attention, Findley allegedly wrote to representatives of Elvis Presley’s family, the Tennessee state court, and the media to claim falsely that the person responsible for the scheme was a Nigerian identity thief located in Nigeria."
"Fame and money are magnets for criminals who look to capitalize on another person's celebrity status," Inspector in Charge Eric Shen of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service Criminal Investigations Group said in the statement. "In this case, Ms. Findley allegedly took advantage of the very public and tragic occurrences in the Presley family as an opportunity to prey on the name and financial status of the heirs to the Graceland estate, attempting to steal what rightfully belongs to the Presley family for her personal gain."
This is a developing story and will be updated.
