KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 (Reuters) - Malaysia’s 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) said on Friday that it is not a party to the civil lawsuit filed by the United States Department of Justice (DOJ), and has never been contacted in relation to the case.

“1MDB notes that the civil lawsuit does not contain any appendices with documentary proof or witness statements to support the allegations made by the DOJ,” the state fund said in a statement.

The Justice Department took legal action on Thursday to recover about $540 million in assets that authorities say were stolen by financiers associated with 1MDB. (Reporting by Praveen Menon; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)