Suspect in Graceland fraud case could face federal trial in April
Lisa Findley, the Missouri woman accused of attempting to illegally put Elvis Presley’s Graceland estate up for auction, could face a federal criminal trial in Tennessee in three months.
During a hearing in federal court in Memphis Wednesday morning that lasted less than 15 minutes, Senior District Judge John T. Fowlkes Jr. scheduled a trial for Wednesday, April 16, at 9:30 a.m.
Public defender Tyrone Paylor and federal prosecutors agreed to the proposed trial date. March 21 is now the deadline for motions.
A prosecutor told Fowlkes that much of the discovery process has been completed and that many of Findley’s phone calls while in custody have been reviewed.
The prosecutor also mentioned an attempt by investigators to put shredded pieces of paper back together along with an unsuccessful attempt to access smartwatch data, but did not go into detail.
Paylor and members of the prosecution team declined to comment to reporters after court.
Findley, who is accused of mail fraud and aggravated identity theft, appeared in the courtroom wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and coat.
She nodded when asked by Fowlkes if she understood that a trial date had been set and turned away from members of the press until the end, when she turned to see the hearing’s attendees walking out of the room.
As part of the alleged scheme, Findley is accused of forging the signatures of Elvis Presley’s late daughter Lisa Marie and Florida notary Kimberly Philbrick in order to claim that Lisa Marie did not pay back a loan from a purported company called Naussany Investments that listed Graceland as collateral.
Philbrick spoke exclusively to ABC News, telling "Good Morning America" in August and "IMPACT x Nightline" in October that she never notarized anything for Lisa Marie Presley and has no idea how her name got tied into Findley’s alleged scheme.
