MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) 鈥 The catalyst behind the failed gambit to sell off the iconic Graceland property in Memphis is a mystery.
The self-styled investment company also is under fire from , an aggressive attorney general and a community of Elvis Presley loyalists who consider the home-turned-museum of the the king of rock n鈥 roll to be sacred ground.
Among the many questions surrounding the attempt to auction Graceland is how often cases pop up in which an entity emerges to claim assets of older or dead people. Experts say it's more common than one might think.
鈥淚 have never heard of a fraud targeting such a well-known institution. So it鈥檚 a bit surprising on that end,鈥 said Nicole Forbes Stowell, a business law professor at the University of South Florida's St. Petersburg campus. 鈥淏ut I don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 surprising to everyday people that are the targets.鈥
Naussany Investments and Private Lending caused a stir when a public notice for a foreclosure sale of the 13-acre (5-hectare) Graceland estate was posted this month.
The notice said Promenade Trust, which controls the Graceland museum, owed $3.8 million after failing to repay a 2018 loan. , an actor and Elvis Presley's granddaughter, inherited the trust and ownership of the home after her mother, , died in 2023.
Naussany said Lisa Marie Presley used Graceland as collateral for the loan, according to the foreclosure sale notice. Keough on May 15 alleging Naussany presented fraudulent documents regarding the loan in September 2023 and asking a Memphis judge to block the sale to the highest bidder.
鈥淟isa Maria Presley never borrowed money from Naussany Investments and never gave a deed of trust to Naussany Investments,鈥 Keough鈥檚 lawyer Jeff Germany wrote in the lawsuit.
鈥淚t's a scam,鈥 actor Priscilla Presley, Elvis鈥 former wife, declared on her social media accounts.
On Wednesday, an injunction by Shelby County Chancellor JoeDae Jenkins , which was planned for the next day. Jenkins said in court that Elvis Presley鈥檚 estate could be successful in arguing Nausanny's attempt to auction Graceland is fraudulent.
One reason is an affidavit from Kimberly Philbrick, the Florida notary whose name is listed on Naussany鈥檚 documents. Philbrick indicated she never met Lisa Marie Presley or notarized any documents for her, according to the lawsuit. The judge said the affidavit brought the signature's authenticity into question.
On the relevant documents, the signature blocks were not correct and the paperwork references an online notarization option that was not recognized in Florida until 2020, two years after the alleged notarization, Stowell said.
鈥淭hat makes me wonder if these documents were created after Lisa Marie passed away,鈥 Stowell said. "The whole thing does not pass the smell test.鈥
Mark Sunderman, a University of Memphis real estate professor, questioned why the lender would foreclose now if it had not received payments years after the loan was issued.
鈥淚f someone starts missing payments or hasn't made a payment, you're not going to sit around for a couple of years and then say, 鈥楪olly, I think we need to foreclose now,鈥欌 Sunderman said.
The lender's legitimacy also is in doubt after unsuccessful attempts by The Associated Press to verify its existence beyond an email address and court filing signed by a Gregory Naussany.
Court documents included company addresses in Jacksonville, Florida, and Hollister, Missouri. Both were for post offices, and a Kimberling City, Missouri, reference was for a post office box. The business also is not listed in state databases of registered corporations in Missouri or Florida.
鈥淚鈥檝e never heard of that business,鈥 Kimberling City Clerk Laura Cather said.
A search of online records for the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority showed no registration for the company. No representatives of Naussany appeared in court, though the company filed an unsuccessful motion denying the lawsuit鈥檚 allegations and opposing the estate鈥檚 request for an injunction.
After the sale was halted, Naussany issued a statement saying it would drop its claim because a key document in the case and loan were recorded and obtained in a different state, meaning 鈥渓egal action would have to be filed in multiple states.鈥 The statement did not specify the other state.
Naussany has not responded to emailed interview requests from the AP. Online court records did not show any legal filings suggesting the claim, or the lawsuit, had been dropped.
Sunderman, the Memphis professor, said that apparently fraudulent claims involving real estate asset disputes arise more often than people think, especially in situations involving inheritances.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very difficult for someone to say, 鈥榃ell, no, I didn鈥檛 take out this loan, I didn鈥檛 sign these papers,' when they鈥檙e dead,鈥欌 Sunderman said.
Darrell Castle, a Memphis attorney not involved in the case but monitoring it, said he often sees cases where older people are targets of fraud.
鈥淚 get cases quite often where people who are really helpless in the final stages of life in a nursing home are financially victimized,鈥 Castle said. 鈥淭he human mind will think of some way to cheat and steal if it can."
Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said Thursday that his office was looking into the case to determine whether the estate was targeted with fraud.
Skrmetti's office can investigate and bring civil lawsuits, including in instances of alleged consumer fraud. It could turn over evidence of criminal wrongdoing to the district attorney or federal authorities.
Opened in 1982, Graceland quickly became Memphis' most famous tourist attraction and a touchstone for fans of Elvis Presley, the singer, actor and fashion icon who died in August 1977 at the age of 42. Hundreds of thousands of visitors flock annually to the museum and the large entertainment complex across the street.
Who would target it with a scheme that 鈥渇ell apart with the first email and phone call, or internet search,鈥 and what holes in the legal system let it got closer to the auction block than it should have, should be the focuses of the attorney general, said Nikos Passas, a Northeastern University criminology and criminal justice professor.
鈥淭he chance of succeeding in what they were trying to do 鈥 that is, to get the property auctioned off and get the proceeds and then use the money 鈥 doesn鈥檛 seem to be the actual intent, unless they are incredibly stupid,鈥 Passas said. 鈥淪o, the question is then, 鈥榃hat was the intent, and who was behind it?鈥欌
___
Mattise reported from Nashville, Tennessee. AP reporter Heather Hollingsworth contributed from Mission, Kansas.
