The prime minister's son, Nazifuddin Najib, today clarified that Sagajuta Sdn Bhd has no links to Ufun as advertised by the Ponzi scheme.

Nazifuddin said this after whistle-blower website Sarawak Report reported today  that he still held shares in 'Ufun-linked company' Sagajuta Sdn Bhd even though he had quit as chairperson in 2012.

Ufun, which is facing a crackdown by authorities in Thailand, had claimed that Sagajuta had help found the Ponzi scheme.

"There is no link between Sagajuta and Ufun. When I was in Sagajuta, I also never met anyone from Ufun," Nazifuddin (photo) told Malaysiakini when contacted.

He said he first heard of the group when he received an invitation to the launch of a joint-venture between Ufun and reputable developer Bina Puri Holdings Bhd.

"At first I thought of going but then I heard they were selling my name, saying that the prime minister's son is coming to officiate the development and therefore people should invest in Ufun's Utokens.

"This was why I lodged a police report," he said.

The Bangkok Post  had previously reported that Thai police estimated that Ufun, through its multi-level marketing scheme and Utoken crypto-currency, has cheated some 120,000 people of a sum of up to RM4.1 billion.

Ufun members sell Utoken, a digital currency, which ostensibly could be used to pay for goods and services.

While netizens have been speculating on the apparent lack of police action against Ufun due to alleged links to Nazifuddin, Nazifuddin himself is still waiting for developments over his police report against Ufun lodged almost three years ago.

Piggybacking on big companies

He added that Sagajuta Sdn Bhd chief executive officer Raymond Chan had also lodged a police report against Ufun for abusing the company's name.

However, Nazifuddin acknowledged that since this was an international investigation, police may require time.

"I am trying to contact the police on their investigation into this matter," he said.

Malaysiakini in a  special report  on May 1 looked at Ufun's claims that its Ponzi scheme endorsed by Nazifuddin but found no concrete evidence to justify this.

Instead, Ufun’s modus operandi has been to sign deals with prominent companies and then use their names and personalities to promote itself.

An example of this was its deal with Bina Puri's subsidiary in Thailand to purchase 100 residential units.

The Ponzi Scheme then went on to advertise Bina Puri as a joint-venture partner in its Utoken scheme.

 

When police finally cracked down on Ufun, Bina Puri, too, fell victim to the Thai police dragnet.

 

Bina Puri's Thai associate company had its bank accounts frozen by the authorities on grounds that funds used by Ufun to purchase its properties were from cheated members.

No direct stake at all

 

In Sagajuta's case, Malaysiakini found to be untrue Ufun's promotional material claim that it controlled 30 percent of a development in Klang Gates, a project by a Sagajuta Sdn Bhd subsidiary.

A Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) search by Malaysiakini did not find Ufun having any direct stake in Lagenda Erajuta Sdn Bhd or Dermaga Suasa Sdn Bhd, which are the joint-venture partners for the development, Gateway Klang.

Gateway Klang marketing development director KK Tham had told Malaysiakini that Ufun had approached the project prior to the Thai crackdown and had offered its service as an agent to introduce its members to purchase property.