HANOI - A MAFIA leader in Vietnam, one of the key figures in the network of executed mafia boss Nam Cam, has turned himself in to police after five years on the run, state media said Wednesday.

Nguyen Van Thang, alias Thang 'Tai Dau', 51, surrendered in Hanoi on Tuesday, eliminating rumours that he had been killed for having known too many secrets about the underworld, the Thanh Nien or Youth daily newspaper said.

Thang surged to the leadership of the northern mafia network in 1990, and had worked directly under Nam Cam, the country's most notorious mafia boss who was sentenced to death in 2003 and executed a year later.

A veteran of the former South Vietnamese army, Nam Cam ran gambling dens, restaurants, brothels and protection rackets during his decade-long reign as Ho Chi Minh City's 'godfather', until his arrest in December 2001.

The scandal, which exposed the links between organised crime and the communist regime, captured the attention of a nation disillusioned with rampant government corruption.

Working under Nam Cam, Thang is believed to have organised illegal gambling and was suspected of fixing several football matches by giving money to some leading players, the Thanh Nien newspaper said.

He was also thought to have had links with some senior sports officials in Vietnam and to have used money to control football activities.

He escaped overseas to hide from a special police search warrant in March 2002.

Vietnam's domestic V-League has been marred by allegations of corruption and match-fixing among players and referees since it began in 2000-2001.

Last week, an appeal court in Hanoi reduced or suspended the prison terms of six referees and officials jailed for corruption and match fixing in July. -- AFP