The officers, from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, turned him over to detectives from the New York Police Department's mid-town south precinct, which covers the hotel and the surrounding area of Manhattan.

The case is now said to be being investigated by the department's Special Victims Unit.

An NYPD spokesman said last night: “There is an ongoing investigation into this matter. Evidence is being gathered. No charges have been filed.” The maid was reportedly taken to hospital by ambulance and treated for "minor injuries".

John Sheehan, the director of safety and security at the Sofitel, told The Daily Telegraph: “The safety and security of our team and our clients is our utmost priority. We are working very closely with the NYPD on their investigation.”

Mr Strauss-Kahn, a former economics professor, lawyer and French finance minister, has since 2007 been the managing director of the Washington-based IMF, which loans large sums of money to countries in economic crisis.

He ran for the Socialist party's presidential candidacy in 2006, but was defeated by Segolene Royal, who went on to lose the general election to Mr Sarkozy the following year.

In 2008 Mr Strauss-Kahn, who is married to Anne Sinclair, an American-French television journalist, admitted that he had an affair with a senior IMF official. He said he had made an “error of judgment”.

He was expected to seek his party's nomination for the 2012 presidential election. Last week he complained that Mr Sarkozy had mounted a “smear campaign” against him and his lifestyle.

By Jon Swaine, New York

Source >  Telegraph