Q&A: The Spitzer scandal

Revelations about New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer's alleged involvement with a prostitute have caused widespread shock in New York and US political circles.

What is he alleged to have done?

Eliot Spitzer has not been charged with any crime

He is alleged to have spent thousands of dollars on a prostitute working with an expensive agency called the Emperors Club.

According to prosecutors, the prostitution ring employed more than 50 prostitutes who charged fees ranging from $1,000 to more than $5,500 an hour and operated in a number of cities from Los Angeles to London.

Mr Spitzer is alleged to be the agency's "Client 9".

He was allegedly caught on a wiretap by federal agents investigating the ring, arranging to meet a prostitute at a Washington hotel called the Mayflower in February.

According to officials speaking to the Associated Press on condition of anonymity, investigators found that during a meeting with a woman called Kristen, Mr Spitzer used two rooms at the hotel - one for himself, the other for the alleged prostitute.

AP reported that sometime around 10pm, the New York governor sneaked away from his security guards and made his way to the room where the woman was waiting.

Why were federal investigators watching him?

The probe started when the Internal Revenue Service began looking into unusual money transactions involving Mr Spitzer.

According to The New York Times, which broke the story, Mr Spitzer aroused suspicion at a New York bank for transferring thousands of dollars by breaking it into smaller amounts and asking the bank to remove his name from the transactions.

Banks are required to report suspicious activity to the Treasury Department whenever they observe something they fear may be a crime.

A few months later, according to the paper, a second bank sent details to the Treasury, detailing alleged suspicious activity regarding transactions involving Mr Spitzer and others.

Mr Spitzer's transactions were traced to accounts with connections to the Emperors Club.

This set in motion a federal investigation of the agency.

Apart from the wiretaps on the agency, in which women were heard discussing "Client 9", FBI agents in Washington had the Mayflower under surveillance when Mr Spitzer was in town.

What charges could he face?

Mr Spitzer has not been charged with any crime.

Experts say he is unlikely to face charges stemming from engaging in sex with a prostitute. Instead, he could face charges relating to payments to an alleged prostitution ring.

This would hinge on an offence called "structuring", which carries a five-year prison term. Basically, this is breaking up financial transactions with an illegal purpose to avoid reporting requirements above a $10,000 threshold.

Legal experts said the purpose of concealing such transactions must be to hide them from the authorities, rather than from one's family.

Mr Spitzer, who used to be New York's attorney general, could also face charges relating to a federal offence of facilitating interstate prostitution. According to legal documents, excerpts from the wiretap indicate that "Client 9" arranged for a prostitute to travel from New York to Washington.

That is classed as a federal crime, written into law in 1910 to prevent forced prostitution and protect women from being trafficked across state lines.

Experts have said that federal authorities rarely prosecute customers in such cases, preferring to focus on the operators of prostitution rings.

Any conviction could cost Mr Spitzer his lawyer's licence.

What do New Yorkers think?

A poll released late on Tuesday found that 70% of New Yorkers thought he should resign, while 66% believed he should be impeached and removed from office if he didn't

The WNBC/Marist Poll was conducted by telephone of 624 New York state registered voters.

Republicans threatened to begin impeachment proceedings if he did not resign within a specified time.