WASHINGTON (AP) — The FBI uses drones for surveillance of stationary subjects, and the privacy implications of such operations are “worthy of debate,” FBI Director Robert Mueller said Wednesday.

He said the law enforcement agency very seldom uses drones now, but is developing guidelines that will shape how unmanned aerial vehicles are to be used.

There will be a number of issues regarding drones “as they become more omnipresent, not the least of which is the drones in airspace and also the threat on privacy,” Mueller said in an appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“We already have, to a certain extent, a body of law that relates to aerial surveillance and privacy relating to helicopters and small aircraft … which could well be adapted to the use of drones,” Mueller said. “It’s still in its nascent stages … but it’s worthy of debate and perhaps legislation down the road.”

A member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Mark Udall, D-Colo., expressed concern that “the FBI is deploying drone technology while only being in the ‘initial stages’ of developing guidelines.”

Drones allows the FBI to learn critical information that otherwise would be difficult to obtain without introducing serious risk to law enforcement personnel, the law enforcement agency said in a statement following Mueller’s comments at the Senate hearing.

The FBI used drones at night during a six-day hostage standoff in Alabama earlier this year. The standoff ended when members of an FBI rescue team stormed an underground bunker, killing gunman Jimmy Lee Dykes before he could harm a 5-year-old boy held hostage.

The FBI said its unmanned aerial vehicles are used only to conduct surveillance operations on stationary subjects. In each instance, the FBI first must obtain the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration to use the aircraft in a very confined geographic area.

The aerospace industry forecasts a worldwide deployment of almost 30,000 drones by 2018, with the United States accounting for half of them.

JAMES GANDOLFINI’S DEATH

Gandolfini, whose portrayal of an emotionally delicate mob boss on one of TV’s greatest drama series earned him three Emmy Awards, died Wednesday while on holiday in Rome, HBO and his managers said. Gandolfini, who was 51, played Soprano on the HBO series from 1999 to 2007. He also appeared in movies including “Zero Dark Thirty” and “Killing Them Softly.”

THE SEARCH FOR JIMMY HOFFA

FBI agents with shovels on Monday began combing through dirt and mud in a weed-grown field north of Detroit looking for Hoffa’s remains or clues to the disappearance of the former Teamsters boss, who many people suspect ran afoul of the mob. Detroit FBI chief Robert Foley said Wednesday he was disappointed the excavation failed to turn up anything linked to Hoffa, who’s been missing since 1975.

JIMMY THE GENT’S HOUSE

In New York, an FBI excavation turned up possible human remains at a home once occupied by gangster James “Jimmy the Gent” Burke, the inspiration for Robert De Niro’s character in “Goodfellas.” Burke, who according to mob lore orchestrated a nearly $6 million robbery, one of the largest cash heists in American history, at Kennedy Airport in 1978, lived at the home while an associate in the Lucchese crime family. The dig, apparently unrelated to the Hoffa dig, started Monday, and an FBI spokesman confirmed Wednesday agents found organic material they want to test. The FBI isn’t discussing the investigation.

WHITEY BULGER’S TRIAL

In reputed Boston mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger’s racketeering trial, a former hit man who admitted killing 20 people, including a close friend, insisted Wednesday he told authorities the truth when he implicated Bulger in 11 slayings. Earlier in the week, the ex-hit man, John Martorano, was unemotional when describing his work but said he was heartbroken when he learned Bulger had become an FBI informant. Bulger’s lawyers deny he was an informant and say he didn’t kill 19 people.

Walter Lee Williams, 64, will appear in a Los Angeles federal courtroom Thursday to face charges of sexual exploitation of children and traveling abroad for the purpose of engaging in sexual acts with children. He had been placed on the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list Monday.

A tip from a Mexican citizen who saw a photograph in a local newspaper and contacted the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City led to Williams’ arrest by Mexican authorities, said Bill Lewis, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles field office. The tipster is eligible for the $100,000 reward.

Williams was captured late Tuesday while drinking coffee near a park in the resort town of Playa del Carmen after Mexican authorities created a ruse to lure him to his local coffee shop, said FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller. He was living under a false name, Eimiller said.

Prosecutor Gaspar Armando Garcia Torres said in Cancun, Mexico, that it wasn’t clear how long Williams had been living in Playa del Carmen and that the fugitive also had an address in nearby Cancun, where he was taken and turned over to Mexican immigration officials.

Garcia Torres did not say whether Williams is suspected of committing any crimes in Mexico.

Williams left the resort city of Cancun on Wednesday evening accompanied by two U.S. officials on an LA-bound Virgin America flight. Quintana Roo state prosecutors turned him over to immigration officials Tuesday evening, and he stayed at an immigration office at the Cancun airport until he left for Los Angeles.

Evidence indicates that Williams has at least 10 alleged victims including the 14-year-old boys cited in a federal indictment. Investigators believe he has more victims and have not ruled out additional charges in the case, as evidence shows Williams expressed an interest and pursued victims younger than 14, Eimiller said.

Williams’ arrest is the culmination of a two-year investigation that began in 2011 and required federal agents to travel to foreign countries to interview possible victims, witnesses and their families.

A student at the University of Southern California informed authorities that Williams may have targeted young boys for sex, and the Los Angeles Police Department started to investigate. Soon, FBI agents learned that Williams was returning from a two-week trip to the Philippines; a search warrant was obtained.

Williams was questioned at the airport, and two computers and a camera were confiscated by authorities who found child pornography and evidence he was engaged in sex acts with young boys, said LAPD Assistant Chief Michel Moore.

“I analyzed the computers and the camera that belong to Williams and found child pornography,” agent Jeff Yesensky said in a video about Williams posted on the FBI’s website Monday to bring attention to the case.

“He preys on the most vulnerable children,” Yesensky added.

In February 2011, within weeks of that airport stop, Williams left the country for Mexico. “He dropped his career at USC and went,” Eimiller said.

Until then, Williams was a tenured professor who taught history, anthropology and gender studies.

“USC is fully cooperating with the FBI investigation,” the university said in a statement. “The FBI has informed us that at this time there is no evidence that any of his alleged illegal activities were associated with the university or took place on campus.”

FBI officials believe Williams was continuing to pursue his publishing career while in Mexico.

A federal arrest warrant was issued for the former Palm Springs, Calif., resident in Los Angeles in April.

The four-count indictment alleges Williams traveled from Los Angeles to the Philippines in January 2011 to engage in sex acts with two 14-year-old boys he met online in 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice said in a statement Monday.

“He allegedly engaged in sexual activity via Internet webcam sessions with these boys and expressed a desire to visit them in the Philippines to have sex,” it states.

While in the Philippines, Williams allegedly engaged in sex acts with both boys and produced sexually explicit photos of one of the boys, bringing it back to Los Angeles County. Williams fled the Los Angeles area about a week after returning from the Philippines, the statement said.

Williams was also affiliated with the Buddhist Universal Association of Los Angeles and espoused an ideology that preached extreme sexual freedoms, according to the FBI.

“We believe he was using his position, his credibility as a professor and his ideologies to lure his victims,” Eimiller said. She said investigators also believe he paid for sex.

Williams has traveled extensively for 25 years throughout Southeast Asia, and specifically the Philippines, according to the FBI. He also lived in Indonesia, Polynesia and Thailand and may have traveled to Peru.

“We’re happy this man is off the street (but) we believe there are other victims who have suffered by this man’s actions and we need to talk with them,” said the LAPD’s Moore.

— “He was a genius. Anyone who saw him even in the smallest of his performances knows that. He is one of the greatest actors of this or any time. A great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes. he was my partner. … He was my brother in ways I can’t explain and never will be able to explain.” — David Chase, creator of “The Sopranos.”

— “James Gandolfini. This is a tremendous loss. A brilliant actor and a wonderful man. Our deepest sympathies to his family. Devastating.” — Actor Michael Chiklis on Twitter.

— “The great James Gandolfini passed away today. Only 51. I can’t believe it.” — Bette Midler on Twitter.

— “It’s an awful shock. James Gandolfini was a fine actor, a Rutgers alum and a true Jersey guy. I was a huge fan of his and the character he played so authentically, Tony Soprano. I have gotten to know Jimmy and many of the other actors in the Sopranos cast and I can say that each of them are an individual New Jersey treasure.” — New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.

— “James Gandolfini what a nice guy, so funny and sweet. He will be sorely missed. Our deepest condolences to his family.” — Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry on Twitter.

— “I am heartbroken about James Gandolfini. He was a gentle giant and great man. I love this picture, I loved him.” — Actress Rose McGowan, who posted a snapshot of her and Gandolfini on Twitter.

— “My condolences to the family and all those who loved James Gandolfini – a true NJ Great and NJ Original. RIP.” — Newark Mayor Cory Booker on Twitter.

— “You will be missed greatly James Gandolfini Maybe best actor ever on a tv series. Salute’” — Comedian Artie Lange on Twitter.

— “awful awful news. James Gandolfini will be missed. He was a great actor. Just great.” — Mia Farrow on Twitter.

— “James Gandolfini. Unbelievably sad news. A fine man.” — Steve Carell on Twitter.

—”My thoughts and prayers go out to James Gandolfini’s family. An extraordinary actor. RIP, Mr. Gandolfini.” — Robin Williams.

— “Fifty-one and leaves a kid — he was newly married. His son is fatherless now … It’s way too young.” — Joe Gannascoli, who played Vito Spatafore on “The Sopranos.”

— “James Gandolfini.. So talented, so nice and far too young to be taken away. You will be missed Sir” — Actress Shannen Doherty on Twitter.

— “R.I.P. James Gandolfini. Such a great actor. More than just tony soprano and that would have been a lot on its own.” — Musician Rob Thomas on Twitter.

— “I am so deeply saddened by the untimely passing of sweet James Gandolfini! My heart is broken for his family!! I’m in shock worked with him in “Surviving Christmas”" — Christina Applegate on Twitter.

— “James Gandolfini was a kind, funny, wonderful guy. I’m so lucky to have worked with him. Sending love to his family. Such a sad, sad day. worked with him on “The Incredible Burt Wonderstone”" — Olivia Wilde on Twitter.

Gandolfini died while on holiday in Rome, the cable channel and Gandolfini’s managers Mark Armstrong and Nancy Sanders said in a joint statement. No cause of death was given.

“He was a genius,” said “Sopranos” creator David Chase. “Anyone who saw him even in the smallest of his performances knows that. He is one of the greatest actors of this or any time. A great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes.”

Gandolfini, who won three Emmy Awards for his role as Tony Soprano, worked steadily in film and on stage after the series ended. He earned a 2009 Tony Award nomination for his role in the celebrated production of “God of Carnage.”

“Our hearts are shattered and we will miss him deeply. He and his family were part of our family for many years and we are all grieving,” said managers Armstrong and Sanders.

HBO called the actor a “special man, a great talent, but more importantly a gentle and loving person who treated everyone, no matter their title or position, with equal respect.” The channel expressed sympathy for his wife and children.

Joe Gannascoli, who played Vito Spatafore on the HBO drama, said he was shocked and heartbroken.

“Fifty-one and leaves a kid — he was newly married. His son is fatherless now … It’s way too young,” Gannascoli said.

Gandolfini’s performance in “The Sopranos” was indelible and career-making, but he refused to be stereotyped as the bulky mobster who was a therapy patient, family man and apparently effortless killer.

In a December 2012 interview with The Associated Press, a rare sit-down for the star who avoided the spotlight, he was upbeat about a slew of smaller roles following the breathtaking blackout ending in 2007 of “The Sopranos.”

“I’m much more comfortable doing smaller things,” Gandolfini said in the interview. “I like them. I like the way they’re shot; they’re shot quickly. It’s all about the scripts — that’s what it is — and I’m getting some interesting little scripts.”

He played Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in Kathryn Bigelow’s Osama bin Laden hunt docudrama “Zero Dark Thirty.” He worked with Chase for the ’60s period drama “Not Fade Away,” in which he played the old-school father of a wannabe rocker. And in Andrew Dominick’s crime flick “Killing Them Softly,” he played an aged, washed-up hit man.

There were comedies such as the political satire “In the Loop,” and the heartwarming drama “Welcome to the Rileys,” which co-starred Kristen Stewart. He voiced the Wild Thing Carol in “Where the Wild Things Are.”

Gandolfini grew up in Park Ridge, N.J., the son of a building maintenance chief at a Catholic school and a high school lunch lady.

While Tony Soprano was a larger-than-life figure, Gandolfini was exceptionally modest and obsessive — he described himself as “a 260-pound Woody Allen.”

In past interviews, his cast mates had far more glowing descriptions to offer.

“I had the greatest sparring partner in the world, I had Muhammad Ali,” said Lorraine Bracco, who, as Tony’s psychiatrist Dr. Melfi, went one-on-one with Gandolfini in their penetrating therapy scenes. “He cares what he does, and does it extremely well.”

After earning a degree in communications from Rutgers University, Gandolfini moved to New York, where he worked as a bartender, bouncer and nightclub manager. When he was 25, he joined a friend of a friend in an acting class, which he continued for several years.

Gandolfini’s first big break was a Broadway production of “A Streetcar Named Desire” where he played Steve, one of Stanley Kowalski’s poker buddies. His film debut was in Sidney Lumet’s “A Stranger Among Us” (1992).

Director Tony Scott, who killed himself in August 2012, had praised Gandolfini’s talent for fusing violence with charisma — which he would perfect in Tony Soprano.

Gandolfini played a tough guy in Tony Scott’s 1993 film, “True Romance,” who beat Patricia Arquette’s character to a pulp while offering such jarring, flirtatious banter as, “You gotta lot of heart kid.”

Scott called Gandolfini “a unique combination of charming and dangerous.”

Gandolfini continued with supporting roles in “Crimson Tide” (1995), “Get Shorty” (1995), “The Juror” (1996), Lumet’s “Night Falls on Manhattan” (1997), “She’s So Lovely” (1997), “Fallen” (1998) and “A Civil Action” (1998). But it was “True Romance” that piqued the interest of Chase.

He shared a Broadway stage with Jeff Daniels, Hope Davis and Marcia Gay Harden in “God of Carnage” when he received the best-actor Tony nod. He was in “On the Waterfront” with David Morse and was an understudy in a revival of “A Streetcar Named Desire” in 1992 starring Alec Baldwin and Jessica Lange.

In his 2012 AP interview, Gandolfini said he gravitated to acting as a release, a way to get rid of anger. “I don’t know what exactly I was angry about,” he said.

“I try to avoid certain things and certain kinds of violence at this point,” he said last year. “I’m getting older, too. I don’t want to be beating people up as much. I don’t want to be beating women up and those kinds of things that much anymore.”

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AP Writers David Bauder, John Carucci and Jake Coyle in New York and Shaya Tayefe Mohajer in Los Angeles contributed to this report.