Warlords, Narco-Pirates, & The Gangster King of Vietnam

The Underworld Podcast

True Crime, Documentary, Society & Culture, History

4.6 • 871 Ratings

🗓️ 14 October 2025

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Emerging from Saigon’s system of warlords and narco-pirates, Nam Cam built a criminal empire by making sure everyone — cops, politicians, media — was in his pocket. But that meant that when everything came crashing down, it crashed down hard, and he took out a decent portion of the city’s leadership with him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	You know, when I started this podcast, it felt like I had to become 10 people overnight.
0:05.3	Producer, editor, marketer, designer. It was a lot. And I kept thinking, I wish I had someone in my
0:12.1	corner to help me figure this out. That's why I love today's sponsor, Shopify. It's like
0:16.7	having a built-in business partner. Shopify powers millions of businesses worldwide, from giants like Jim Shark to scrappy
0:24.7	upstarts just getting going.
0:26.6	With Shopify, you can launch your own studio or store using hundreds of stunning templates
0:30.6	that match your brand's vibe.
0:32.4	Need help with content, their AI tools help write product descriptions and enhance your
0:37.3	photos. Marketing, easy email and
0:39.8	social campaigns built right in. Inventory, shipping, returns, Shopify's got your back on all of it.
0:46.3	Turn your big business idea into with Shopify on your side. Sign up for your $1 per month trial
0:53.6	and start selling today at
0:54.7	Shopify.com.com.com.com slash glassbox. Go to Shopify.com.com.com.com. dot co.uk
1:03.7	slash glassbox.
1:05.0	It's 1225am
1:07.2	on October 2nd, 2000
1:09.5	at a karaoke bar
1:11.5	in central Saigon.
1:14.0	Aurokis Ram AM on October 2, 2000, at a karaoke bar in central Saigon.
1:14.0	A raucus ramshackle corner, a Vietnam southern metropolis, aka Ho Chi Minh City, where locals and
1:21.3	tourists sing, dance and drink themselves into a stupor.
1:25.3	But on this particular evening, the revelry is about to be shattered
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from The Underworld Podcast, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of The Underworld Podcast and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.