A Connecticut ethics commissioner has been charged with patronizing a prostitute after he was pepper-sprayed during which police say was a mix-up with the wrong woman.

According to police, Noel Kayo, an ethics commissioner in Bridgeport, had arranged to meet a woman at a hotel in Stratford. Police say another woman was waiting at the hotel at the same time for payment for photographs for which she previously posed.

Police say the woman got into Kayo's car, demanding her money while he argued for his services. The woman and her boyfriend both used pepper spray on Kayo.

The woman and her boyfriend have been charged with third-degree assault.

Kayo denies the prostitution charge, saying he was a victim of attempted robbery. He says he will not resign.

The Associated Press wire services helped contribute to this report.