Trương Văn Cam, known by the sobriquet Năm Cam (April 22, 1947 – June 3, 2004) was a notorious Vietnamese mobster who is often called the "Godfather" of Vietnam. Known for building and running a criminal enterprise revolving around gambling dens, hotels, racketeering, extortion, loan sharking and restaurants that fronted for brothels, during his heyday, Năm Cam was considered one of the most powerful mob bosses in Vietnam, and was said to have attained influence that even extended into the ranks of Vietnam's Communist Party which he used to his advantage by bribing law enforcement and government officials to protect his lucrative enterprise and cover up his murders of other criminal rivals in Saigon that challenged his reign. In fact, his connection and ties with the Vietnam's Communist Party was so tight that during his trial, 153 other people that were tried with him were high ranking officers of the Communist Party.
For 15 years, Năm Cam reigned as the Godfather of Saigon. His downfall however came during a gang feud with another notorious female gangster from the northern city of Haiphong, Dung Hà who was considered one of the two great powers of the Vietnamese underworld alongside Năm Cam. Coming to the South, Dung Hà attempted to build her own gang in Saigon, and often came into conflict with Văn Cam. After a series of confrontations and standoffs between Dung Hà's group and Năm Cam's mob, Cam ordered the murder of Dung Hà. Authorities later arrested him alongside several members of his mob and cooperating Communist Party officers, leading to a massive public trial totaling 155 defendants, making it the largest criminal trial in the country at the time. Năm Cam and four of his members were sentenced to death, and Năm Cam was executed on June 3, 2004.
View More On Wikipedia.org
