A woman from Missouri with a history of minor scams and fraud was arrested on Friday morning on federal charges related to an extensive scheme aimed at extorting millions from Elvis Presley’s family and unlawfully acquiring their ownership stake in Graceland, the late musician’s renowned Memphis residence.
Lisa Jeanine Findley, also known as Lisa Holden and by various other names, is 53 years old. She has been charged with mail fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to a criminal complaint made public on Friday.
Findley appeared for the first time in court on Friday afternoon before Magistrate Judge David Rush at the United States Courthouse in Springfield, Missouri. She was assigned a public defender during the brief hearing, which lasted only seven minutes.
During the hearing, she waived her right to a preliminary hearing or a detention hearing and consented to have those proceedings occur in the Western District of Tennessee, where the prosecution is based. The government has requested her detention, and she was ordered to be transferred to the Western District of Tennessee, where she remains in custody.
Prosecutors allege that Findley was the mastermind behind a fraudulent operation aimed at selling Graceland. NBC News initially reported in June on her connections to the scheme, which involved the use of false identities, post office boxes, and various phone and fax numbers linked to the fraudsters.
A source familiar with the events described a tumultuous scene during Findley’s arrest at her home in Kimberling City, where “at least 15 officers” executed the warrant.
An attorney listed as Findley’s legal representation in court documents did not respond to inquiries for comment on Friday. In an interview outside her home in June, Findley denied any connection to the alleged Graceland scam. Shortly after this interview, the online accounts linked to the plot attributed to her were deleted.
The Graceland fraud became public in May when a company called Naussany Investments, which appeared to have no legitimate existence, claimed that Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis’ only child who passed away in January 2023, owed millions due to unpaid loans.
After the Presley family did not pay, Naussany Investments sought to initiate a foreclosure on Graceland to seize it for debt collection. The high-profile case made news globally but was dismissed by a Tennessee judge who concluded that the documentation provided by Naussany Investments was likely fabricated. Following this, someone purportedly representing the scammers contacted various media outlets, asserting that a group of Nigerian identity thieves was behind the operation.
Findley was identified as being connected to the Graceland scheme in a June NBC News investigation. A fraudulent Facebook profile mimicking the name of the phony company attempting to enforce the Graceland foreclosure uncovered multiple other links including fake emails and online reviews, post office boxes, and various contact numbers found through court documents, interviews, and investigative digging.
Rasheed Jeremy Carballo, a former associate of Findley, testified before a grand jury investigating the alleged fraud. He revealed to NBC News in June that Findley had disclosed information about a plan involving Lisa Marie Presley’s house that was purported to net millions.
As part of the alleged scheme, Findley is accused of forging signatures, names, and notary seals to create counterfeit loan documents. Furthermore, as highlighted in the complaint, FBI investigators traced telephone and email communications linking Findley to the Shelby County Register’s Office, where the questionable Graceland deed had been filed. They also discovered that she used temporary email accounts connected to her phone number to submit foreclosure notices to a local Memphis newspaper. Additionally, investigators found that the account number provided for payments by Naussany Investments had been linked to Findley’s personal checking account.