On June 18, a Missouri grandmother, Lisa Jeanine Findley, 53, will stand earlier than a federal choose in Memphis, TN. She shall be there to be taught what number of years she’s going to spend in jail for her tried vendor impersonation fraud (SIF) to promote Graceland, the house of Elvis Presley. The sentence could possibly be as much as 20 years.
The previous resident of Kimberling Metropolis, MO, pleaded responsible to 1 depend of mail fraud in late February. Information in america District Court docket of Western Tennessee element her scheme. She created a faux mortgage firm, cobbled collectively faux paperwork, and made fraudulent courtroom filings, in line with the courtroom submitting. All in an effort to swindle one in all Presley’s grandchildren out of the Presley mansion in Memphis.
Riley Keough, 35, a mannequin, actress, and filmmaker, inherited Graceland by The Promenade Belief when her mom died. Lisa Marie Presley handed away on January 12, 2023. That was 4 days after she visited Graceland for the 88th anniversary of her father’s beginning. Keough’s mom was the one youngster of Elvis and Priscilla Presley.
Vendor Impersonation Fraud On The Rise
Findley, who has a string of aliases, is formally convicted of mail fraud. Nevertheless, it’s just like wire fraud. The distinction between mail and wire fraud is the means used to perpetrate the crime. Mail fraud is dedicated utilizing america Postal Service (USPS) or different carriers, reminiscent of FedEx, UPS, and many others. Wire fraud makes use of digital communication, reminiscent of faxes, telephones, emails, or the web.
Each mail and wire fraud are SIF swindles carrying federal sentences as much as 20 years. Extra importantly for property homeowners and actual property professionals, SIFs are on the rise.
The 2025 Particular Report: Actual Property Wire Fraud Developments discovered that 95% of title and escrow professionals surveyed reported wire fraud elevated or remained fixed over the earlier yr. As well as, 60% mentioned they’ve been subjected to such fraud within the final 12 months.
The fraud menace report is printed annually by Qualia, a digital actual property closing platform. The agency solely sees fraud makes an attempt rising.
“The monetary impacts of wire fraud appear more likely to improve within the years forward,” in line with a Qualia assessment of its 2025 report. “Already, some title & escrow firms have skilled losses of greater than $500,000 in a single yr.”
The Graceland Scheme
The Graceland SIF scheme is a traditional, with just a few gildings.
SIF plots typically start with the demise of a property proprietor. The plan to cheat Keough out of Graceland started with the demise of her mom, Lisa Marie Presley, at age 54.
Findley launched her scheme by making a faux firm, Naussany Investments & Personal Lending, LLC., in line with courtroom paperwork. Findley used that firm identify and a minimum of three aliases to launch her SIF rip-off.
Posing as Kurt Naussany, a faux officer of the faux firm, Findley emailed Keough’s attorneys just a few months after Lisa Marie Presley’s demise, threatening to foreclose on Graceland. Performing as Naussany Investments, Findley filed a false creditor’s declare with the Superior Court docket of California in Los Angeles and a faux deed of belief with the Shelby County Register’s Workplace in Memphis.
Fishy Mortgage Paperwork
The phony lending firm claimed Lisa Marie Presley had pledged Graceland as collateral for a $3.8 million mortgage that had not been repaid. Naussamy Investments was providing to settle the declare for $2.85 million.
In one other fabrication, Naussany produced a promissory observe purportedly signed by Presley and notarized by a Florida notary in 2018.
Nevertheless, two issues with the promissory observe surfaced instantly.
One was that the mortgage doc was purported to have been notarized remotely. Such transactions are achieved utilizing video conferencing. The issue there was that Florida didn’t permit distant on-line notarization (RON) till 2020.
One other was that the signature regarded nothing like Presley’s or the notary’s. Kimberly Philbrick, the notary whose signature was badly solid, submitted an affidavit to the grand jury that investigated the SIF case. In it, she swore that she didn’t notarize the transaction. “I’ve by no means met Lisa Marie Presley, nor have I ever notarized a doc signed by Lisa Marie Presley,” Philbrick wrote. “I have no idea why my signature seems on this doc.”
Keough Fights Again
Push again on the SIF was launched when Keough sued Naussamy Investments in Tennessee state courtroom.
Findley, performing as Naussany Investments, ran an advert in Memphis’ each day newspaper, The Business Enchantment. The advert introduced that Graceland can be bought to the very best bidder on Could 23 final yr. Nevertheless, Keough’s go well with stopped the sale.
Dealing with authorized scrutiny, Findley contacted Keough’s attorneys, the state courtroom, and members of the information media, reporting that the entire thing was a fraud. Nevertheless, she pointed the blame for the scheme on an unidentified identification thief in Nigeria.
Arrest on Anniversary Of Elvis’ Demise
Coincidentally, Findley was arrested for her Graceland scheme on August 16, 2024 – the forty seventh anniversary of Elvis Presley’s demise. For some, that added a private contact to the case.
“As a Memphian, I do know that Graceland is a nationwide treasure,” mentioned U.S. Legal professional Kevin G. Ritz for the Western District of Tennessee. “This defendant allegedly used a brazen scheme to attempt to defraud the Presley household of their curiosity on this singularly necessary landmark. After all, all owners should have their property protected against fraud, and the Division of Justice will vigorously prosecute anybody who commits monetary crimes or identification theft.”
How Vendor Impersonation Fraud Works
“Typically of SIF, the fraudster searches public data to establish property that’s free and away from a mortgage mortgage or different liens,” in line with Outdated Republic Title’s web site.
These grifters typically search trip properties, rental properties, and vacant land. As well as, seniors are sometimes focused.
As soon as a property is chosen, the felony poses because the property proprietor. They then rent an actual property agent utilizing e-mail, the web, or textual content messaging to speak.
Typically, the perpetrator tells the agent they want a fast sale for an emergency. In consequence, they listing the property beneath market worth for an all-cash purchaser and a fast shut.
How To Defend Your self
There are quite a few crimson flags that sign attainable fraud in actual property transactions. The American Land Title Affiliation (ALTA) gives a free obtain of SIF.
Among the many issues which will point out SIF are:
- The proprietor won’t meet in particular person and can solely talk by textual content, e-mail, or phone.
- The property will not be occupied by the proprietor.
- The vendor desires a sale inside three weeks and should not negotiate charges.
Measures you’ll be able to take to safeguard your pursuits embrace:
- Ask the actual property agent if they’ve met the vendor in particular person or have verified his/her identification.
- Mail a letter to the proprietor of the property on the handle listed on the tax data.
- Require notarization from a notary you will have personally verified. Keep in mind that a respectable notary’s signature was solid within the Graceland case.
- Examine the vendor’s signature to the signature of the proprietor proven on different recorded paperwork.
Learn Extra:
Max Okay. Erkiletian started writing for newspapers whereas nonetheless in highschool. He went on to turn out to be an award-winning journalist and co-founder of the print journal Free Chicken. He has written for a variety of regional and nationwide publications in addition to many on-line publications. That has afforded him the chance to interview quite a lot of distinguished figures from former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Financial institution Paul Volker to Blues musicians Muddy Waters and B. B. King. Max lives in Springfield, MO together with his spouse Karen and their cat – Pudge. He spends as a lot time as attainable together with his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
