Squeaky-clean governor who backs Hillary 'is caught using high-class prostitutes by FBI'

ELIOT SPITZER, the New York governor dubbed the "Mr Clean" of American politics, was last night linked to a high-class prostitute ring.

Spitzer, 48, apologised as news broke that he is being investigated as part of a vice ring that stretched from New York to London and Paris.

"I have disappointed and failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself," he said.

As New York State's attorney-general, he made a name for himself with a series of high- profile busts of mafia dons and Wall Street bankers.

Spitzer, who is not facing criminal charges, saw success in cleaning up corrupt practices on Wall Street propel him to the governorship two years ago.

But it emerged yesterday he is accused of being a client for the Emperor's Club VIP, a high-class prostitution ring charging its clients up to £1,550 per hour.

The club is said by investigators to have at least 50 women servicing super-rich clients in New York, Miami, Washington, London and Paris.

Four alleged leaders of the vice ring are to be charged after an investigation involving more than 5,000 separate wiretaps by the FBI, it emerged.

The allegations sent shockwaves through the Democratic party last night. And there were immediate calls from Republicans for him to resign, with supporters concluding it may be difficult for him to remain governor in the face of the scandal.

"Given his high profile, it's very unlikely," said commentator William Bennett, of the conservative Claremont Institute. "It's probably too much."

Spitzer was caught in a wiretap during an FBI investigation. The governor is identified in a 26-page affidavit as "Client Nine" of the prostitution ring.

A summary of a phone call he is alleged to have made with a woman, named Rochelle, shows him apparently closing the deal on a prostitute named "Kristen".

It is alleged he had agreed to travel to Washington to meet the prostitute, who was herself from New York, on 13 February.

Rochelle tells Client Nine "the package has arrived," and they agree he will meet her at 10pm in the Mayflower Hotel, Washington DC.

Rochelle then tells him Kristen is "American, very pretty, petite, brunette, 5ft 9in tall," and Client Nine says: "OK, great, wonderful." He then offers to pay $3,600 but when he is asked for a further $1,500, he says he will try to find a bank to get the extra cash.

Mr Spitzer did not comment on the case itself, though his office confirmed that he did visit Washington DC in the middle of last month.

Speaking at a hastily announced press conference with his wife, Silda, by his side, the father of three said: "I apologise first and most importantly to my family.

I apologise to the public, to whom I promised better. I am disappointed that I failed to live up to the standard I expected of myself."

As attorney-general, Mr Spitzer had even prosecuted a prostitution ring on New York's Staten Island, indicting 18 defendants.

But while his successes propelled him to victory for the governorship, he also faces accusations of improper practices after tasking state police on personal-protection duty to reveal the travel plans of Republican rivals in the state legislature.

He may escape prosecution if he is found to have been a client of the prostitutes, but pundits say it is unlikely he will survive as governor.

The effect on the Democratic Party of the prominent fall of one of its leading lights was unclear last night. As a Democratic Party "super delegate", he had given his support to Hillary Clinton, a New York senator.

FALL FROM THE MORAL HIGH GROUND

ELIOT Spitzer built his political reputation on rooting out corruption, including several headline-making battles with Wall Street while serving as attorney general.

He served two terms where he pursued criminal and civil cases and cracked down on misconduct and conflicts of interests in corporate America, in a series of cases in the aftermath of the Enron collapse.

He took aim at New York banks for price-fixing and for advising clients to buy stocks without disclosing that they had invested in those stocks. His most high-profile case, which is ongoing, was his accusation that Dick Grasso, the chairman of the New York Stock Exchange, had received excessive compensation.

Time magazine even named Mr Spitzer its "Crusader of the Year".

He first leapt to prominence in 1992 when, as a prosecutor in the Manhattan District attorney's office, he wiretapped mobsters from the infamous Gambino crime family in New York City's garment district.

In 2006, he entered the governor's office with a historic share of the vote, promising to continue his no-nonsense approach to fixing one of America's worst governments.

He was following in the footsteps of the state's many well-known governors, from Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt to Nelson Rockefeller, and some speculated that Mr Spitzer might eventually make a run for the White House.

But his stint as governor has been marred by several problems, including an unpopular plan to grant driver's licences to illegal immigrants.