Democratic lawmakers have released a suggestive letter purportedly sent by United States President Donald Trump to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee, which is probing the handling of a criminal investigation into the disgraced financier, published the letter and drawing of a nude woman on social media on Monday. It had been handed over to the committee by Epstein’s estate.

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The letter was originally reported on in the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), leading Trump to deny he had written it and to file a $10bn lawsuit against the newspaper.

The letter was included as part of a 2003 album compiled for alleged sex trafficker Epstein’s birthday.

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee received a copy of the birthday album on Monday as part of a batch of documents from Epstein’s estate.

The White House did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

Trump has denied writing the letter and creating the drawing, calling a report on it “false, malicious, and defamatory”.

“These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures,” Trump said, though news media reports later noted that Trump had donated a number of drawings to charity auctions over the years.

The letter released by the committee looks exactly as described by the WSJ in its report.

The note bearing Trump’s name and signature includes text framed by a hand-drawn outline of what appears to be a curvaceous woman.

“A pal is a wonderful thing. Happy Birthday – and may every day be another wonderful secret,” the letter says.

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Trump once considered Epstein a friend, and the controversy surrounding the now-deceased high-profile figure has prompted conspiracy theories, especially among the president’s far-right supporters.

Epstein died by suicide in his jail cell in 2019, but he is believed to have abused hundreds of underage girls during his decades as a high-powered financier.

Questions have lingered over how he could have evaded justice for so long and whether his vast network of powerful contacts played a role.

Many of Trump’s supporters have been calling for the release of the sex offender’s files since July, when US Attorney General Pam Bondi reversed course on the president’s election campaign pledge to release court documents that some believed contained damning revelations about Epstein and his alleged elite clientele.

Democrats – as well as some Republicans – have seized on the moment, pushing for the full release of the files and carrying out their own investigations.

Last week, a Republican-led US House of Representatives committee said it released 33,295 pages of files, though advocates said the release offered little new information.