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As the war began to expand in earnest, Crum's PX monopolies did too. Along with his contracts for coin-operated amusements, he wangled the exclusive distributorship for Mandarin Textiles' Dynasty fashions in PXs and NCO clubs. He became a representative for the James B. Beam Distilling Co. of Chicago and the Carling Brewing Co. of Cleveland. He also kept up his lucrative side trade in such goods as freezers and air conditioners, many of which were conveniently—and illegally —stored on a base under the eye of his good friend, General Cole, the Senators were told.
As the Army probed deeper into the sergeants' cabal, they eventually came up against Crum and his "friends." Last June, the Army placed Cole on involuntary retirement after demoting him to colonel and stripping him of medals. Crum has dropped from sight—presumably to sail his yacht in the South Pacific while charting his next move.
There are those who maintain that Crum is but one among many. Indeed, Senate subcommittee sources in 1969 confirmed private reports that the black market in U.S. dollars and machinery may have been costing the American taxpayers upwards of $2 billion yearly. Asked by Senator Abraham Ribicoff if there were more "crumbs" operating in Viet Nam, Bybee replied: "Senator, there are many, many crumbs, although they haven't been as successful as William J. Crum."