2024-08-16 23:45:02
A Missouri woman with a long history of small-time scams and fraud was arrested Friday morning on federal charges in connection with a scheme to extort Elvis Presley’s family out of millions and steal their ownership interest in the music legend’s former Memphis home, Graceland, prosecutors announced.
Lisa Jeanine Findley, who is also known by Lisa Holden and a slew of other aliases, 53, was charged with mail fraud and aggravated identity theft in a criminal complaint unsealed Friday, prosecutors announced. She’ll make her initial court appearance today in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri.
Prosecutors say she allegedly orchestrated a scheme for the fraudulent sale of Graceland. NBC News was first to report in June on Findley’s connections to the Graceland plot, including false identities, post office boxes, and phone and fax numbers that appeared to link her to the scammers.
A person with knowledge of the situation who asked not to be named described a chaotic scene, as Findley was arrested this morning at her Kimberling City home with “at least 15 cops” coming to execute a warrant.
An attorney listed as representation for Findley in court documents did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Friday. In a June interview in front of her home, Findley denied any involvement or knowledge of a scam involving Graceland. The online accounts linked to the Graceland plot associated with Findley were deleted soon after that interview.
The Graceland scheme first became public in May after a company without any records or evidence that it existed at all, Naussany Investments, filed a court claim that Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis’ only child — who died in January 2023 — owed millions of dollars in unpaid loans.
After Presley’s family failed to pay, Naussany Investments attempted to force a foreclosure sale of Graceland to collect. The case made international headlines, but was soon tossed by a Tennessee judge who found Naussany Investments’ documents had likely been forged. Someone claiming to represent the scammers emailed media outlets, including NBC News, saying a ring of Nigerian identity thieves had been responsible for the scheme.
NBC News first connected Findley to the Graceland plot in a June investigation. A fake Facebook profile using the same name as the fabricated company attempting to force the Graceland foreclosure led to more than half a dozen other links: fake emails and online reviews, post office boxes, and phone and fax numbers, found through court records, interviews, online sleuthing and on-the-ground reporting.
Rasheed Jeremy Carballo, a former acquaintance of Findley’s who testified before a grand jury hearing testimony on the alleged scam, told NBC News in June that Findley had shared details with him about a deal involving Lisa Marie Presley’s house that would make millions.
As part of the scam, Findley forged names, signatures, and notary seals to create fake loan documents, according to the charging documents.
In addition to the links reported by NBC News in June, the complaint stated FBI investigators found via telephone and email records that Findley had called the Shelby County Register’s Office, where the fake Graceland deed was filed, and used burner emails connected to her phone number to submit notices of the foreclosure to a Memphis newspaper. FBI investigators also reported bank records for the account number provided for payment by Naussany Investments was actually Findley’s personal checking account.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
