Copying shapefile then making feature layer using ArcPy gives ERROR 000732?

The only thing I need is an exact copy of an existing shapefile in the same directory with a different name.

I have tried:

arcpy.CopyFeatures_management (ORLinks, MyLinks) #ORLinks: old links, MyLinks: new links

but for some reason, I cant make it a feature layer using:

arcpy.MakeFeatureLayer_management(MyLinks, 'MyLinks')

Error Encountered:

Error: Failed to execute. Parameters are not valid.

ERROR 000732: Input Features: Dataset 
M:\RAIL\Rail2.0.shp does not exist or is not supported
Failed to execute (MakeFeatureLayer).