Eliot Spitzer, Ex-New York Governor, Accused Of Assaulting Woman; Representative Denies Claim

The New York Police Department (NYPD) has begun a probe into former governor Eliot Spitzer after a woman accused him of assault at a city hotel Saturday night, media reports said, citing sources. Lisa Linden, a spokeswoman for Spitzer, reportedly denied the claim saying there was “no truth to the allegation.”

A 25-year-old woman claimed that Spitzer chocked her inside a room at the Plaza Hotel, located at the Fifth Avenue near Central Park, two law enforcement sources briefed on the investigation told CNN. The woman, who has not been identified, told police that she tried to slit her wrist following the assault, the New York Post reported, citing sources.

"The victim has indicated that the subject is Eliot Spitzer," the NYPD said, in a statement released Sunday, according to CNN. "Through an ongoing investigation, we are attempting to further establish the identity of the subject and the nature of the incident."

Spitzer resigned as New York's governor in 2008 after being involved in a prostitution scandal. In 2008, the New York Times reported that Spitzer was a frequent client of a high-priced hooker ring. The scandal came just 14 months into his term as the governor. Spitzer stepped down on March 17, 2008, amid threats of his impeachment by state lawmakers. He was replaced by his lieutenant governor, David Paterson.

“I cannot allow for my private failings to disrupt the people’s work,” Spitzer reportedly said, at the time. “Over the course of my public life, I have insisted — I believe correctly — that people take responsibility for their conduct. I can and will ask no less of myself. For this reason, I am resigning from the office of governor.”

Following months of embarrassment from the prostitution scandal and his resignation, Spitzer reemerged as a political commentator. He made attempts to make a political comeback in 2013 by running for city controller against Scott Stringer. However, he lost the Democratic primary.

Spitzer, who was married at the time the prostitution scandal surfaced, eventually split from his wife, Silda Wall Spitzer, in 2013. He later started dating Lis Smith, the former spokeswoman for then-Mayor-elect of New York City, Bill de Blasio, the New York Post reported, adding that the pair split in 2015.