"The words attributed to me criticising other Aboriginal leaders are also false. I made no such remarks.

"As a senior Yolngu elder, I can only speak alongside Yolngu clan nations of East Arnhem, and not for or on behalf of other First Nations clans."

A copy of the signed statement supplied to NITV News by Terry Yumbulul.

Source: supplied

Letter revealed to contain paragraphs lifted from academic papers and websites Social media users reveal that paragraphs in a letter purportedly written by a senior Yolngu Elder and published in a NewsCorp blog by columnist Andrew Bolt can be found near verbatim in an unrelated website and an academic paper.

In an exclusive interview with NITV News on Monday morning, Mr Yumbulul said that he was contacted by businesswoman Josephine Cashman regarding elements contained in the letter published by Bolt, but emphasised that he did not author the letter.

Mr Yumbulul took issue with several aspects of the letter published by Bolt and attributed to his name.

For example, the letter contained spelling errors that Mr Yumbulul said he would not make and contained a claim that Ms Cashman was bestowed with a leadership role within the "Yolgna" [sic] community.