President Donald Trump has followed through on a threat to sue The Wall Street Journal and owner Rupert Murdoch over a story the paper published Thursday about an off-color letter he allegedly wrote to Jeffrey Epstein.

According to CNBC reports posted on Friday afternoon, court records show that Trump filed a lawsuit alleging libel by Murdoch, the Journal’s publisher, Dow Jones, and the reporters who wrote the article.

The news report said the matter was filed in federal court for the Southern District of Florida.

Reuters reported that Trump is seeking at least $10 billion in damages over the Journal's report that in 2003 he sent Epstein a birthday greeting that included a sexually suggestive drawing and a reference to shared secrets.

The original article in the Journal asserted that the letter, said to feature a sketch of a naked woman and Trump's signature, was part of a collection of notes for Epstein's 50th birthday in 2003.

The newspaper says it reviewed the letter but did not print an image.

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"I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn't print this Fake Story," Trump wrote on his Truth Social network. "But he did, and now I'm going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper."

Trump's full statement said:

The Wall Street Journal printed a FAKE letter, supposedly to Epstein. These are not my words, not the way I talk. Also, I don’t draw pictures. I told Rupert Murdoch it was a Scam, that he shouldn’t print this Fake Story. But he did, and now I’m going to sue his ass off, and that of his third rate newspaper. Thank you for your attention to this matter! DJT

Australia-born media mogul Murdoch also owns Fox News, which has regularly demonstrated an anti-Trump bias since 2016.

In an earlier post, Trump said:

The Wall Street Journal, and Rupert Murdoch, personally, were warned directly by President Donald J. Trump that the supposed letter they printed by President Trump to Epstein was a FAKE and, if they print it, they will be sued. Mr. Murdoch stated that he would take care of it but, obviously, did not have the power to do so. The Editor of The Wall Street Journal, Emma Tucker, was told directly by Karoline Leavitt, and by President Trump, that the letter was a FAKE, but Emma Tucker didn’t want to hear that. Instead, they are going with a false, malicious, and defamatory story anyway. President Trump will be suing The Wall Street Journal, NewsCorp, and Mr. Murdoch, shortly. The Press has to learn to be truthful, and not rely on sources that probably don’t even exist. President Trump has already beaten George Stephanopoulos/ABC, 60 Minutes/CBS, and others, and looks forward to suing and holding accountable the once great Wall Street Journal. It has truly turned out to be a “Disgusting and Filthy Rag” and, writing defamatory lies like this, shows their desperation to remain relevant. If there were any truth at all on the Epstein Hoax, as it pertains to President Trump, this information would have been revealed by Comey, Brennan, Crooked Hillary, and other Radical Left Lunatics years ago. It certainly would not have sat in a file waiting for “TRUMP” to have won three Elections. This is yet another example of FAKE NEWS!

He weighed in with another post later Friday morning, saying:

I look forward to getting Rupert Murdoch to testify in my lawsuit against him and his “pile of garbage” newspaper, the WSJ. That will be an interesting experience!!!

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Trump was already facing a firestorm over his past relationship with Epstein, and claims that his administration is covering up lurid details of Epstein's crimes to protect rich and powerful figures.

Epstein died by suicide in a New York prison in 2019 — during Trump's first term — after being charged with federal sex trafficking in a scheme where he allegedly groomed young and underage women for sexual abuse by his wealthy contacts.

He was previously required to register as a sex offender in Florida after pleading guilty to two felony prostitution-related charges.

On Thursday, Trump asked Attorney General Pam Bondi to release transcripts of grand jury testimony in the Epstein case, "subject to court approval."

The alleged letter — which Trump denies writing — is raunchy, as were others in the collection, the Journal reported. It contains several lines of typewritten text, contained in an outline of a naked woman drawn with a marker.

"The future president's signature is a squiggly 'Donald' below her waist, mimicking pubic hair," the Journal reported.

"The letter concludes: 'Happy Birthday — and may every day be another wonderful secret.'"

Trump denied writing the letter or drawing the figure, telling the Journal: "This is not me. This is a fake thing."

"I don't draw pictures of women," he said. "It's not my language. It's not my words."

Murdoch, who controls the NewsCorp global media company, was in Trump's suite Sunday at MetLife Stadium outside New York City for the FIFA Club World Cup final.

The media mogul also owns Fox News, which scored the first TV interview with Trump upon his return to the White House in January.

The president has regularly praised Fox and its presenters over the years — and even hired some to his administration.

The Trump-supporting right has long latched onto the Epstein scandal, claiming the existence of a still-secret client list and that he was murdered in his cell as part of a cover-up.

The Justice Department and FBI said in a memo made public this month that there is no evidence that Epstein kept a "client list" or was blackmailing powerful people.

They also dismissed the claim that Epstein was murdered in jail, confirming his suicide, and said they would not be releasing any more information on the probe.

That could change if grand jury testimony or evidence are released.

On Thursday, U.S. media reported that a federal prosecutor who handled Epstein's case, who is the daughter of a prominent Trump critic, was abruptly fired.

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Maurene Comey, whose father is former FBI director James Comey, was dismissed Wednesday from her position as an assistant U.S. attorney in Manhattan, the reports said.

Comey also prosecuted Ghislaine Maxwell, the only former Epstein associate who has been criminally charged in connection with his activities.

Maxwell is the person who compiled the leather-bound book of letters for Epstein in 2003, the Journal reported.

"The WSJ should be ashamed for publishing it. Where is this letter? Would you be shocked to learn they never showed it to us before publishing it?" Vice President JD Vance wrote on X.