North Korea has denied any involvement in the cyber attack on Sony Pictures and has suggested a joint investigation into the attacks, The New York Times reported Saturday.

But the statement from the unnamed official also includes a threat to the U.S., saying there will be "serious consequences" if the offer for a joint investigation is turned down. 

"We have a way to prove that we have nothing to do with the case without resorting to torture, as what the C.I.A. does," the statement said.

The statement came from a report in a North Korean news service and was first reported by The Associated Press.

It is unlikely the U.S. will accept the offer, even as some doubts exist on whether or not the secretive regime is behind the attack on one of Hollywood's biggest companies. There are some similarities to a previous attack on South Korean banks, where data was deleted after the cyberattack.

American officials have said they believe the cyberterrorism is the regime's new tool to make political statements.

The hack exposed unreleased scripts, listed salaries, embarrassing emails and leaked a copy of "The Interview" – the comedy that depicts the assassination of the current leader of North Korea, Kim Jong-Un – and has delivered a significant financial blow to Sony.

North Korea previously denied being behind the attack but praised it in days following, calling it a "righteous deed."

The cyberattack also included an email threatening movie theaters that released "The Interview" on Christmas Day, which recently caused a mass rejection of the release. In a statement earlier this week, Sony said it was only canceling the release in theaters because of the theaters refusing to release the film.

North Korea has said blaming the attacks on the country is slander and engaging in a joint investigation will prove it is innocent. 

President Barack Obama said that the theaters who backed out of the release set a precedent to give into intimidation.