Riley Keough fights off foreclosure and auction of her grandfather Elvis’ Graceland
Elvis Presley’s granddaughter is suing an investment and lending company to halt a foreclosure sale of the late singer’s famed Graceland mansion.
Actress Riley Keough, who inherited the Memphis property after the death last year of her mother, Lisa Marie Presley, and a settlement with grandmother Priscilla Presley, obtained a temporary restraining order against a sale of Graceland by Naussany Investments & Private Lending LLC. The sale was initially scheduled for May 23, according to CNN.
Keough’s lawsuit, which was reviewed by The Times, claims that the company presented documents “purporting to show that Lisa Marie Presley had borrowed $3.8 million from Naussany Investments and gave a deed of trust encumbering Graceland as security.”
Keough denied that her mother had any involvement with Naussany Investments, claiming that the documents were “fraudulent” and possibly forged.
Florida notary Kimberly L. Philbrick, whose signature appears on the alleged agreement between Lisa Marie Presley and Naussany Investments, claimed in an affidavit that she did not notarize the documents.
“I have never met Lisa Marie Presley, nor have I ever notarized a document signed by Lisa Marie Presley,” Philbrick’s affidavit read. “I do not know why my signature appears on this document.”
Priscilla Presley agreed to step down as a co-trustee on the estate of her daughter, Lisa Marie Presley. Now, the exact terms of that exchange have been made public.
“Lisa Marie Presley never borrowed money from Naussany Investments and never gave a deed of trust to Naussany Investments,” the lawsuit read.
Moreover, the lawsuit alleged that Naussany Investments was seemingly created “for the purpose of defrauding” and could be a “false entity.”
Naussany Investments did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for comment.
Elvis Presley Enterprises, which manages the Presley estate, also called the claims fraudulent and told The Times in a statement that there is no foreclosure sale.
“Simply put, the counter lawsuit [that] has been filed is to stop the fraud,” the statement read.
Priscilla Presley, Elvis’ widow, also weighed in with an Instagram post on Sunday.
“It’s a scam!” read bright red letters over a photo of the Graceland mansion.
Keough was officially named the sole trustee of Lisa Marie’s estate and, by extension, Elvis’ estate in November after a judge approved a settlement between her and Priscilla, 78.
After Lisa Marie’s Presley’s death and a legal dispute with grandmother Priscilla Presley, Riley Keough says she’s strengthened qualities that ‘come about through adversity.”
As part of the settlement, Keough agreed to make a $1-million lump-sum payment to Priscilla that will be funded by Lisa Marie’s $25-million life insurance policy.
The settlement also provides that Priscilla will be buried at Graceland in the closest gravesite to the King of Rock ’n’ Roll and will maintain a role as special advisor in dealing with Elvis’ estate, for which she will be paid $100,000 a year.
The legal tensions arose after Priscilla contested Lisa Marie’s will following her death last January at age 54. Specifically, Priscilla questioned “the authenticity and validity” of a 2016 amendment that removed her and former business manager Barry Siegel as trustees in place of Lisa Marie’s eldest children, Keough and her brother, Benjamin Keough, who died in 2020 at 27.
The family reached a settlement last May, which was later approved by L.A. Superior Court Judge Lynn H. Scaduto.
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