He may be under investigation for bribery, but eight-term Louisiana congressman William Jefferson says he has no intention of resigning.  The feds claim to have caught Jefferson red-handed.

The FBI claims to have caught Louisiana congressman William Jefferson with his hand in the cookie jar.

During a meeting last July at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Arlington, Virginia, Jefferson was reportedly captured on video tape accepting $100,000 from an FBI informant.

The money, according to the feds, was to be used by Jefferson to bribe a high-ranking Nigerian official to ensure the success of a business venture there.

Four days later, all but $10,000 of that money is found in Jefferson's home, stashed inside a half-dozen food containers in Jefferson's freezer.

On Monday, Jefferson met briefly with reporters, but he refused to discuss any of the allegations against him.

Congressman Jefferson says his lawyers have advised him not to discuss it and he will not discuss any of the alleged facts of this case.

One watch dog group says the temptation for public officials is greater than ever before.

Bill Hogan says he thinks the opportunities for corruption on a grand scale are just sitting there.  He says there are more than $2 billion a year spent on lobbying members of congress.

Since 9/11 the FBI has made public corruption one of its top priorities.

In fact, Jefferson is just one of more than 2,000 investigations currently underway.

Robert Mueller says public corruption and protecting civil rights are the top criminal priorities of the FBI.

But did agents go to far?

Jefferson say he believes federal agents over-stepped their authority when they searched the congressman's office on Capitol Hill.

According to one congressional historian, it's believed to be the first time any members congressional office has been searched.

Congressman William Jefferson says his lawyers have expressed outrage, others have as well.  He says all of those who consider themselves scholars in this matter have also done so and he thinks with respect to that he is correct.

Attorney General Alberto Gonzales says he understands the concerns raised about the raid on Jefferson's office.

But, Gonzales says special precautions were taken to make sure that all documents unrelated to the criminal investigation were left untouched, by what Gonzales called a filter team, a group of agents not connected with the Jefferson investigation.

Chuck Huebner, TV 10 Eyewitness News