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Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti said in a statement that his
office was investigating if any fraud was carried out by
Naussany Investments & Private Lending, which on Wednesday
abandoned its plan to auction Graceland.
"Graceland is one of the most iconic landmarks in the state of
Tennessee, and the Presley family have generously shared it with
the world since Elvis's passing," Skrmetti said. "My office has
fought fraud against homeowners for decades, and there is no
home in Tennessee more beloved than Graceland."
A request for comment from Naussany Investments & Private
Lending that was sent to an email address of a company
representative listed in court documents was not immediately
returned.
The company said on Wednesday that it was abandoning plans to
auction off Graceland after a Tennessee judge blocked the sale
following allegations of fraud.
Graceland, where Presley is buried, is a popular tourist
attraction, drawing more than 600,000 visitors a year. Presley,
dubbed the "King of Rock and Roll," died in 1977 at age 42.
Naussany Investments had claimed that Presley's daughter, Lisa
Marie Presley - who died last year at age 54 - had used
Graceland as collateral when borrowing $3.8 million that was
never repaid, according to a public notice of the intended sale.
Presley's granddaughter, actress Riley Keough, who inherited the
home after her mother's death, sued Naussany, asserting that her
mother never took out the loan and that Naussany was engaged in
fraud.
In a sworn affidavit attached to the lawsuit, the notary public
listed on Naussany's documents said she had never met Lisa Marie
Presley or notarized her signature.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Longmont, Colorado; Editing by
Leslie Adler)
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