The estate of Elvis Presley is fighting what it says is a fraudulent scheme to sell Graceland at auction to the highest bidder
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The estate of Elvis Presley is fighting what it says is a fraudulent scheme to auction off Graceland to the highest bidder.
An auction was scheduled for Thursday this week, but a Memphis judge blocked it after Presley’s granddaughter, Riley Keough, asked for a temporary restraining order and filed a lawsuit, court documents showed.
A public notice for the foreclosure sale of the 13-acre property in Memphis posted earlier in May said that Promenade Trust, which controls the Graceland Museum, owed $3.8 million after failing to repay a loan in 2018. Keough trust and home ownership after the death of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, last year.
Naussany Investments and Private Lending said Lisa Marie Presley used Graceland as collateral for the loan, according to the foreclosure sale notice. Keough, on behalf of Promenade Trust, filed a lawsuit last week, alleging that Nosani submitted fraudulent documents regarding the loan in September 2023.
“Lisa Maria Presley never borrowed money from Naussany Investments and never provided a deed of trust to Naussany Investments,” Keough’s attorney wrote in a lawsuit.
Kimberly Philbrick, the notary named in the documents, indicated that she had never met Lisa Marie Presley or notarized any documents for her, the court document stated. The Associated Press sent a text message to Philbrick at numbers believed to be hers, but she did not immediately respond.
W. Bradley Russell, Keough’s attorney, declined to comment Tuesday.
Kurt Nosani, identified in court documents as the defendant, directed questions in an email to Gregory Nosani. “Lawyers can make the comment!” Gregory Nosani told the AP in an email. Court records do not show an attorney for the company.
Court documents included company addresses in Jacksonville, Florida, and Hollister, Missouri. Both were post offices. The city of Kimberling, Missouri, was designated for a post office box.
A judicial 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 countersuit was filed with the goal of stopping the fraud,” Elvis Presley Enterprises Inc. said in a statement Tuesday.
Graceland opened as a museum and tourist destination in 1982 in honor of Elvis Presley, the singer and actor who died in August 1977 at the age of 42. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors every year. A large Presley-themed entertainment complex located across the street from the museum is owned by Elvis Presley Enterprises.
Tim Marshall, from Queensland, Australia, hit the doors of Graceland on Tuesday as part of a week-long US tour with his partner. Marshall, 54, said he heard news of the attempt to sell Graceland.
“I was surprised,” Marshall said. “We don’t know enough about it. I think it wouldn’t be good if they lost him.”
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Associated Press reporters Sarah Broomfield in Silver Spring, Maryland, and Heather Hollingsworth in Mission, Kansas, contributed to this story.
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This story has been corrected to reflect that Russell is Keough’s attorney, not Naussany Investments.
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