The Boston Marathon bombers could have
been identified by neighbors and acquaintances months before their attack
if certain factors were in place. Unfortunately, the 17 agencies
compromising the U.S. Intelligence Community (IC) are all on “Z” while most of
the American public linger behind on “A” regarding the topic of spotting
possible homegrown terrorists. This discord exists partly because the counterintelligence
(CI) and counterterrorism (CT) cultures keep under wraps intelligence gathered,
for fear of giving away their furtive sources and methods.
Understandable, but this secrecy creates a disconnect between
public participation in identifying terrorist threats and intelligence
professionals diligently attempting to keep America out of harm's way. I think it can be
bridged if CI and CT authorities create a pure, sanitized public
relations campaign to combat terrorism, and the conduit to do so is already in
place...the existing Neighborhood Watch (NW) programs.
Utilizing NW citizen participation to uncover Boston Marathon
bomber-types would supply CI and CT with an army of civilians already educated in
identifying and reporting suspicious activity in their neighborhoods. Such a
partnership would decrease the suspicion and
mistrust many Americans feel toward the Intelligence Community (IC),
particularly toward the CIA and NSA.
It would be a "Win-Win" decision for the IC- they would
recapture the patronage of the American populace, plus their anti-terrorism efforts
would be complemented with a legion of local denizens who know what’s “normal”
activity in their respective residential settings. After all, to prevent local
crimes, they already have been trained by local law enforcement to write down
descriptions of suspicious persons and vehicle license plate numbers, models,
colors, etc. Local citizens and businesses “know” their neighborhood customs
and idiosyncrasies and are familiar with their neighbor’s habits, types of
friends, relatives, vehicles, leisure pursuits, interests, etc.
If CI/CT representatives spoke to the local NW program in the Boston
Marathon bomber's neighborhood about identifying homegrown terrorist
activities, I wonder if a few suspicious eyebrows would have risen?
Terrorists expend lots of time and
effort meeting with fellow radicals to plan, prepare, finance and to purchase and
store materials before executing the final attack. Unseen inside a quiet
neighborhood home, garage, or even workplace, they can be detected if laypeople
are educated on what to look for. I offer these 13 Tell-Tale Mannerisms of a Homegrown
Terrorist as a start:
1- Uncommon cell phone
behavior: Terrorists need communication with others to plan meetings or buy
materials and chemicals. They use multiple anonymous pay-as-you-go mobiles
phones and swap SIM cards and handsets. Stolen mobiles are typical. Also, they
may have large quantities of mobile phones. Several years ago, two terror
suspects bought hundreds of cell phones from WalMart stores throughout Ohio
and Michigan. The FBI and DHS now advises police to look out for bulk phone
purchases because terrorist use them as bomb detonators or resell them to fund
a terrorist attack.
2- Suspicious Passports
or questionable student visas: They use multiple identities and documents.
Both Boston Bombers lived were allowed to re-enter the U.S. despite having
expired or invalid student visas.
3- Small truck, vans
and station wagon vehicles: They need transport and will buy, rent, or
lease a van or small truck for transport, even possibly for use in the attack
itself. Anyone working in commercial vehicle renting, leasing or sales should
be on the lookout for suspicious behaviors.
4- Excessively
thorough interest in local site:
Terrorists use cameras or camcorders to gain logistics and other information
about potential attack sites. It helps them plan coordinated and comprehensive attacks.
If you see anyone preoccupied with security arrangements, heavy pedestrian
traffic, etc., report it. The Boston Marathon bombers originally planned to
kill people at a July 4th celebration site. I wonder if shots of them casing
out this location are stored in the memory banks of Boston's CCTV surveillance
camera system.
5- Over-abundant
purchases. Be on the watch for persons buying large or unusual quantities
of chemicals for no reason. Anything odd, such as purchasing two pressure
cookers or accumulating BBQ propane canisters from different stores falls under
this category. I once conducted police surveillance at the local supermarkets
for excessively large purchases of baking soda, which drug dealers used to cut
their pure cocaine. We simply followed them out to the parking lot and to their
home. In 2009, Zazi and three others linked to the Denver-NYC terrorist
connection, bought a dozen 32-ounce bottles of "Ms. Kay's Liquid"
from a beauty supply store in Denver. A store owner alerted the authorities of
the suspicious purchases of peroxide and acetone products.
6- Suspicious financial
transactions: They need funding and check and credit card fraud runs
rampant among terrorist cells. They may open up numerous checking accounts or
carry lost or stolen credit cards. Be suspicious if you see them carrying
around separate check books from different banks. They may also be getting
financial support from questionable sources. Ironically, Boston Marathon bomber
Dzokhar received money into his prison account from supporters, up to $1,000
from one individual. I wonder if they were receiving funds before their attack.
7-
Suspicious use of and heavy reliance on
computers: They are on the cutting edge of organizational networking to
recruit new members, raise money, organize activities, and distribute
propaganda. Suspicious computer behavior, such as visiting terrorist-related
websites should be a red flag. Terrorists make instant press releases after a
fatal bombing attack on their respective websites. Not surprisingly, the al Qaeda
web magazine "Inspire" was found on the Boston bomber's computers.
Both were Muslims who gravitated to a radical strain of Islam and actually
posted anti-American, jihadist videos on social-media sites.
8-
Protection Paraphernalia: Terrorists
often need to handle hazardous waste and radioactive, biological or other WMD
material. They may use masks, goggles, thick rubber gloves, disposable or
reusable coveralls, hardhats, safety glasses, chemical-resistant clothing, face
shields, devices to protect their hearing or even use portable respirators that
cover only the mouth and nose to large varieties that supply oxygen to
self-contained suits. You may see someone carrying these items into the garage
at night or find them thrown away in a dumpster.
9- Padlocks:
Terrorists need secure storage and lock-ups, garages, backyard sheds, storage
rentals, etc. are often used. Both Boston bombers lived in Cambridge
Massachusetts, and police found bomb elements in their home.
10- Terrorists need to
travel: All terrorist attacks in the last year, inside America, were from
home grown terrorists. But, these radical actors were influenced, funded and
trained overseas. Many U.S. citizens turned terrorists have flown to the Middle
East to train and plan attacks back “home”…in the U.S. Unlike most of us who
take foreign vacations, they may not freely brag about their "vacation"
when they arrive back in the U.S. Be suspicious when they are vague about where
they went, sites they saw, etc.
11- Change in behavior:
A terrorist finalizing an attack plan may behave differently from how you’ve
known them to behave in the past. Even a well-integrated homegrown terrorist
who has lived and worked in a particular neighborhood gets a bit antsy as the
attack plan nears fruition.
12- Strange visitations: A terrorist usually
has people helping him. These people may come and go at odd hours. Trust your
instincts! The Boston bombers had friends and acquaintances who were arrested
shortly after the attack. Kadbayev and Tazhaykov were arrested on
immigration-violation charges and overstaying on their student visas, but also
were charged with destroying and hiding the bombers' backpack containing
fireworks and laptop computer. Then, Robel Phillipos, a naturalized U.S.
citizen born in Ethiopia and high school classmate of the younger Tsarnaev
bomber, was arrested for lying to the police and covering up for them.
13- Overhear Threats:
A true terrorist detests western democracies. Due to their uncompromising
beliefs, they may get quite angry at times and shout, boast, laugh about, or
mention during a normal chat their intention to harm civilians. Obstinate and
unbending viewpoints may be expressed when discussing politics, religion,
societal issues, etc. If you hear an intimidating or even threatening tone of
voice, weigh this observation against your previous observations. Three
students who knew Dzhokhar Tsarnaev told police that he dropped sinister hints
before the attack, even telling them that he learned how to make a bomb!
I am deeply concerned about the problem of home-grown terrorists and the
increasing number of individuals in the US becoming captivated by extremist
ideology...I hope you are, too.
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Robert Morton, M.Ed., Ed.S. is a member of the Association Of Former Intelligence Officers (AFIO) and writes the online spy series Corey Pearson- CIA Spymaster in the Caribbean. The views expressed are his own and do not represent those of any organization he is a member of. Contact him on the Secure Contact Form