A court case filed in Los Angeles seeking to recover $1bn from scandal-plagued Malaysian fund 1MDB has named two Abu Dhabi officials, according to press reports.

Khadem al-Qubaisi stepped down as managing director of Abu Dhabi government-controlled International Petroleum Investment Company (Ipic) in 2015.

Mohamed al-Husseiny was CEO of Ipic subsidiary Aabar Investments until 2015.

The UAE central bank reportedly froze the accounts of the two officials in April.

The suit filed by the US Department of Justice alleges $3.5bn was misappropriated from 1MDB, and that the proceeds were partially laundered in the US.

Ipic is pursuing a separate $6.5bn arbitration against 1MDB in London. It is seeking the return of billions of dollars, allegedly misdirected to companies in the Cayman Islands with similar names to Ipic subsidiaries.

In 2015, Ipic bailed out the debt-laden 1MDB, by agreeing to provide it with $1bn in cash and to assume $3.5bn of 1MDB debt in exchange for some of the fund’s assets. It alleges that payments related to the guarantees were never received.

1MDB denies all wrongdoing, but is cooperating with the US’ investigation.

Abu Dhabi plans to merge Ipic with a second Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, Mubadala Development Company.