MEMPHIS, Tenn. — 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 a lawsuit alleging fraud, an aggressive attorney general and Elvis Presley loyalists who consider the home-turned-museum of the the king of rock n' 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. "I have never heard of a fraud targeting such a wellknown institution.
So it's a bit surprising on that end," said Nicole Forbes Stowell, a business law professor at the University of South Florida's St. Petersburg campus. "But I don't think it's surprising to everyday people that are the targets.
" A public notice for a foreclosure sale of the 13-acre 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.
Naussany Investments and Private Lending said Elvis Presley's daughter, Lisa Marie Presley, used Graceland as collateral for the loan, according to the foreclosure sale notice. Riley Keough, an actor and Elvis Presley's granddaughter, inherited the trust and ownership of the home after her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, died in 2023. Keough filed a lawsuit on May 15 alleging Naussany presented fraudulent docum.
