| WASHINGTON, Dec. 9 — Federal agents are planning to fan out across the country this week in an effort to recruit American businesses in the war on terror, urging companies to notify the government of suspicious customers. Robert C. Bonner, commissioner of the Customs Service, said he had developed a list of about 100 items that the authorities believed terrorists wanted to buy in this country. Starting Monday, Mr. Bonner said, federal agents will visit the manufacturers, emphasize the need for vigilance and encourage them to inform the Customs Service at once if they are approached by anyone trying to buy these items for possibly illegal shipment abroad. The terrorists' shopping list, the Customs Service says, includes missiles, grenades, grenade launchers and other munitions; aircraft parts; computer encryption devices; and components of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons, as well as items that might be used to manufacture or deliver such weapons. Officials said the list included equipment needed to grow anthrax bacteria and grind the spores; chemicals like thiodiglycol, a precursor of mustard gas; and electronic timers known as krytrons, which can be used to trigger nuclear devices. The Customs Service enforces export-control laws, and Dennis H. Murphy, a spokesman for the agency, said it was shifting its priorities to focus on machinery, equipment and technology sought by terrorists. Customs agents will visit 300 companies in the next few months and "will start knocking on doors" on Monday, Mr. Murphy said. If companies identify a suspicious customer, he said, they should call the Customs Service's office of investigations on a toll-free number, (800) Be Alert, or (800) 232-5378. Officials said corporate sales agents should be suspicious if customers request products that do not correspond with their normal line of business — if, for example, a foreign shoe manufacturer orders centrifuge machines that could produce material for nuclear weapons. Some items on the list have legitimate civilian uses, and the Customs Service initiative is not intended to restrict or discourage legitimate exports, officials said. The Customs Service does not expect American corporations to investigate buyers of goods and services to determine if they are engaged in illegal activity. But when customs agents visit American businesses, they will describe certain signs of suspicious activity, including these: A customer wants to pay cash for high-tech items or military goods. A buyer has not obtained the necessary export licenses or insists that the licenses are not required or will not be a problem. A customer is willing to pay much more than the usual price or value of a product. A buyer has little or no understanding of the product he or she is requesting or the commercial activity in which he or she is supposedly engaged. A buyer has no interest in the customer service offered with a product or rejects the manufacturer's offer to train employees in proper use of the product. A customer insists on unusual packaging requirements — for example, extra-large boxes that could be used to smuggle merchandise or contraband. A buyer deviates from normal shipping practices in exporting goods. "We must not choke off trade in the process of ratcheting up security," Mr. Bonner said. But, he added, with the nation at war and facing new terrorist threats, it is important for American companies to know their customers. |