A man who won £2.4m on the national lottery helped build a multimillion pound drug empire that involved manufacturing counterfeit tablets on an industrial scale, a court has heard. John Eric Spiby, 80, was the leader of a drugs operation worth up to £288m that centred on his “quiet, rural” home near Wigan, Bolton crown court was told. Spiby won the money in 2010, and was involved in flooding the region with millions of tablets disguised as diazepam, the court heard. The court heard that he also “provided the premises and helped adapt the premises and purchase machinery” worth thousands of pounds to make the drugs. Composite: Greater Manchester policeBolton crown court heard how Spiby Sr had boasted that “Elon [Musk] and Jeff [Bezos] best watch their backs” in a group chat.