MEMPHIS, TN (CelebrityAccess) — A Missouri woman is facing federal charges in connection with an alleged scheme to defraud Elvis Presley’s family out of their ownership interest in Graceland, his former Memphis home.
Lisa Jeanine Findley was charged by the Justice Department of allegedly attempting to conduct a fraudulent sale of Graceland after claiming that Elvis Presley’s daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, had used the property as collateral for a loan that she failed to repay before her death.
The Justice Department alleges that Findley posed as three different people affiliated with a private lender, Naussany Investments & Private Lending LLC, which proved to be fictitious.
Findley allegedly claimed that Presley borrowed $3.8 million in 2018 from Naussany Investments in 2018 and later filed a false creditor’s claims in a Los Angeles Court, deeds, and purportedly fake notices of foreclosure with the Memphis government and the the daily Memphis newspaper, The Commercial Appeal.
Findley later tried to shift blame to a Nigerian identity thief when the purported scheme attracted national media attention, the DOJ alleges.
For her role in the alleged scheme, Findley is facing charges of mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. If convicted, she faces a mandatory minimum of two years in prison for aggravated identity theft and a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for mail fraud.
“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. “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.”
“As a Memphian, I know that Graceland is a national treasure,” said U.S. Attorney Kevin G. Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee. “This defendant allegedly used a brazen scheme to try to defraud the Presley family of their interest in this singularly important landmark. Of course, all homeowners deserve to have their property protected from fraud, and the Department of Justice will vigorously prosecute anyone who commits financial crimes or identity theft.”
