TEN policemen stood guard when Billy Webb made a court appearance in Bolton last year.

Webb, whose real name was William Craig, appeared before magistrates in January, faced with the charge of conspiring to supply drugs.

The court appearance came after Webb, who used to live in Morrison Street, Great Lever, had been arrested by police in Scotland in 1999.

The charges had been brought following an operation by drug squad officers.

At the hearing, Webb was also charged with possession of a sharp blade on October 6, 1999, as well as conspiring to obtain financial loans.

He had spent his 41st birthday, on December 23, 1999, on remand, awaiting trial.

Webb was remanded in custody following the court appearance at Bolton magistrates in January 2000, which prompted an increased police presence.

He was to spend a further birthday behind bars before his release from remand following a hearing held in private at Manchester Crown Court.

Webb was released on bail but was due to appear at Liverpool Crown Court later this year for trial.

He was due to appear in the Liverpool court in October along with a number of other defendants.

It is believed Webb had been living at the first floor flat in Whiteledge Road, Bryn, Wigan, where he was shot dead early yesterday.

He had previously lived in Morrison Street, Great Lever, and is understood to have had once lived in a house on Darwen Road, Bromley Cross.