NEW YORK —  Jason Itzler served time in prison for running a high-end call girl service in New York City. Back then he met Ashley Alexandra Dupre — the woman at the center of the Eliot Spitzer sex scandal, MyFOXNY.com reports.

Itzler, who once called himself the “King of All Pimps,” said Dupre was one of the best hookers he'd ever worked with. Itzler ran a high-priced escort agency called “New York Confidential,” and said Dupre worked for him. He claims Dupre was 19 at the time and went by the name "Victoria."

Dupre was a cocktail waitress at the Hotel Gansevoort in Manhattan and served him a drink, Itzler said. Thinking she was beautiful, he asked her out on a date. He gave her his card, not mentioning what he did for a living. Several days later Itzler said Dupre called him and told him, “I want to work for you,” MyFOXNY.com reports.

• Click here for photos of Dupre.

• Click here for more on Spitzer's resignation.

It was Dupre’s idea to work for him, Itzler claims. He said she was not a runaway or homeless, but had a job that was not easy to get. He claims the Hotel Gansevoort is very selective.

Itzler told MyFOXNY.com that Dupre is "going to be huge." He said that she is beautiful and will likely become a star because of her singing abilities as well as her looks.

Responding to a New York Times article claiming that high-end call girls are subjected to abuse as much as women who walk the streets, Itzler said: "Don't believe everything you read. I never got one complaint from a girl that they were mistreated. I never heard anything about what you're talking about."

Click here for more on this story from MyFOXNY.com.