NY police probe assault claim against Eliot Spitzer; lawyer disputes

The police department issued a statement confirming that detectives were “investigating allegations of an assault which occurred at a midtown hotel”. Spitzer met responding officers at the door of the hotel room and said there was no problem; they later returned and found “blood and glass”, per numerous media reports, and took Travis to the hospital, where she said Spitzer had choked her. Spitzer went with her, and that is where she originally claimed Spitzer tried to choke her earlier in the night. Meanwhile, his wife of 25 years, Silda Spitzer, remained married to him, more or less, although in July 2013 they were said to be living apart and she was reportedly plotting a post-election emancipation. Believed to be in her 20s, she is from Russian Federation and the two may have been arguing about her returning there.

The pair talked for a brief time and then Spitzer left, according to the newspaper report.

DAHLGREN (on-camera): Now, sources tell NBC that overnight, the woman traveled home to Russian Federation; so still a lot of questions in this case.

Police are investigating a woman’s report that she was assaulted by former Gov. Eliot Spitzer in a room at The Plaza Hotel, an allegation his spokeswoman said was false.

Svetlana Travis, 25, took a 7:30 p.m. Sunday flight from JFK Airport to Moscow, using a ticket she had purchased in advance, the sources said.

Spitzer attempted to keep Travis calm, Kaufmann said. “I think everything being reported on him is true, that’s pretty despicable”, says Dana Baldani.

“The woman who initially made the allegation was not my girlfriend”. “Mr. Spitzer acted appropriately at all times during this incident”. The NYPD said, “The victim has indicated that the subject is Eliot Spitzer. Through an ongoing investigation, we are attempting to further establish the identity of the subject and the nature of the incident”, the statement said. Lis Smith was my girlfriend, and I had and have deep affection for Lis. He hosted a short-lived CNN show, and mounted an unsuccessful run for New York City comptroller, which he ended up losing the Democratic primary.

Spitzer, a Democrat, resigned two years into his term in 2008 amid revelations that he had sex with prostitutes.

While Spitzer was never charged for his actions, the college student who managed the prostitution ring was sentenced to prison for six months in 2011 after pleading guilty for charges of money laundering and conspiring to promote prostitution, as reported by the New York Times.