Elvis’ estate fights ‘fraudulent’ auction of Graceland
The company that tried to auction off Elvis Presley's Graceland is being investigated for fraud. Photo: AAP
Elvis Presley’s granddaughter is leading a fight against what the late rocker’s estate says is a fraudulent scheme to auction off Graceland.
An auction had been scheduled for Thursday (local time) has been blocked by a Memphis judge blocked it after Presley’s granddaughter Riley Keough sought a temporary restraining order and filed a lawsuit, court documents show.
It followed a public notice for a foreclosure sale of the famous 5.3-hectare estate in Memphis posted earlier in May. It said that Promenade Trust, which controls the Graceland museum, owed $US3.8 million ($5.7 million) after failing to repay a 2018 loan.
Keough, an actress, inherited the trust and ownership of the home after the death of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, in 2023.
Her grandmother, Elvis’s former wife Priscilla, posted about the case on Instagram on Tuesday, writing: “It’s a scam.”
According to the foreclosure notice, Naussany Investments and Private Lending said Lisa Marie Presley had used Graceland as collateral for the loan. But Keough, on behalf of the Promenade Trust, sued last week, claiming that Naussany presented fraudulent documents regarding the loan in September 2023.
“Lisa Marie Presley never borrowed money from Naussany Investments and never gave a deed of trust to Naussany Investments,” Keough’s lawyer wrote in a lawsuit.
Kimberly Philbrick, the notary whose name is listed on the documents, indicated she never met Lisa Marie nor notarised any documents for her, the court filing said. The Associated Press texted Philbrick at numbers believed to be hers, but she didn’t immediately respond.
Keough’s lawyer W. Bradley Russell declined to comment on Tuesday.
Kurt Naussany, who was identified in court documents as a defendant, directed questions in an email to Gregory Naussany. Gregory Naussany told the AP in an email: “The attorneys can make comment!”
Court records do not show a lawyer for the company.
The court documents included addresses for the businesses in Jacksonville, Florida, and Hollister, Missouri. Both were for post offices. Another address, in Kimberling City in Missouri, was for a post office box.
An injunction hearing is scheduled for Wednesday in Shelby County Chancery Court.
“Elvis Presley Enterprises can confirm that these claims are fraudulent. There is no foreclosure sale. Simply put, the counter lawsuit has been filed is to stop the fraud,” Elvis Presley Enterprises said on Tuesday.
Graceland opened as a museum and tourist attraction in 1982 as a tribute to Elvis Presley, the singer and actor who died in August 1977 aged 42.
It draws hundreds of thousands of visitors each year. A large Presley-themed entertainment complex across the street from the museum is owned by Elvis Presley Enterprises.
-with AAP
