The author of an offensive email sent to members of the Phi Kappa Tau fraternity at Georgia Tech issued an apology Thursday acknowledging that he should've never written the letter to begin with.

The email described, using crude and misogynistic language, how brothers of the fraternity could pick up women at parties, and the subject line was "Luring your Rapebait." TotalFratMove posted the email online Monday, and thereafter, several other websites quickly picked up on it while the school began investigating it.

In an apology from the author, shared with The Huffington Post and several other outlets Thursday, he writes:

I am deeply sorry for the pain and embarrassment my actions and lack of judgement have caused the students at Georgia Tech and my Phi Kappa Tau brotherhood as well as those who otherwise came into contact with the email. As hard as it may be to believe, it was written as a joke for a small audience that understood the context and that it is not my nor my fraternity’s actual beliefs on the subject. I have now come to realize this is a very serious topic that should not be taken lightly.

At the request of the letter's author, HuffPost is withholding his name. Several websites have identified the letter's author with a close, yet incorrect name.

He attempted to offer an explanation of why he signed off at the end of the letter with "In luring your rapebait."

"One particular term originated from the nickname I received as a pledge, which was '4th Grade Rape Bait' due to my youthful looks and the connotation of what may happen to someone like me in prison," the author said. "This became an internal fraternity joke and the term found its way into several communications, inappropriately and even nonchalantly."

Nevertheless, the author said he resigned as social chair of the house.