He said the home ministry would need to check on the claim about Low’s whereabouts.

“I have no information. We haven’t received any information on this,” he said briefly to reporters after the groundbreaking ceremony of Kompleks Madani at Teluk Kumbar.

Late yesterday, investigative journalists Bradley Hope and Tom Wright said Low, the alleged mastermind in the 1MDB scandal, is believed to be residing in a high-end neighbourhood in Shanghai and holding a fake Australian passport.

In a YouTube livestream, they said they had gathered evidence from various sources and newly uncovered documents which showed that Low is living in a mansion in Green Hills, an “ultra high-end neighbourhood” in Shanghai.

They said Low was using a fake Australian passport with the Greek name Constantinos Achilles Veis to hide his identity.

Hope and Wright also claimed that Low was now working as a “behind-the-scenes strategist for the Chinese government”. His role allegedly includes helping sanctioned companies from China “navigate difficulties around the world”.

The duo are former Wall Street Journal journalists who broke many of the key early 1MDB stories and co-wrote the book “Billion Dollar Whale” about the scandal.

Low, who has been charged in Malaysia and the US over allegations that he orchestrated the theft of US$4.5 billion from 1MDB, was previously said to be in Macau, although Beijing has denied protecting the fugitive financier.