When her marriage fell apart and her sister died, Amanda Machin
was left on the verge of suicide and turned to her local Anglican
vicar.
But Rev Steve Rankin persuaded her to part with £160,000
and left her ‘penniless’.
### The vicar convinced her to sell her house and donate
thousands to the Church and missionary trips.
### She also invested £50,000 in a business venture with the
‘charismatic’ cleric which failed.
Mrs Machin said she was ‘completely dependent’ on the vicar who
told her to stop taking anti-depressants prescribed by her GP.
The minister told her he could cure her depression because it
was caused by ‘demonic’ ties to her family.
She was visiting his £550,000 vicarage several times a week for
‘deliverance ministry’.
### And he said that to be rid of the depression, she should
strive to be a better Christian by giving up ‘worldly possessions’
and giving her money to the Church.
### ‘When he spoke about the money, he told me this was what it
said in the Bible,’ she said. ‘He made me believe I was living a
life of excess and I wasn’t a good Christian unless I gave up my
possessions.’
She even made the vicar executor of her will with complete
control over her money until her daughter Jenny, 12, reached
21.
### He also asked for £2,000 for a garage conversion at his home
and used £300 of her money for his wife's trip to Finland.
### She invested £50,000 into a property renovation firm with
him and he refused to do work.
### He persuaded an elderly parishioner to lend them £15,000
when the business floundered.
### But the vicar failed to tell her the loan was in both their
names until the paperwork was complete.
### The vicar told her to sell her house and donate £11,000 to
the church, demanding the cash before the sale was even
complete.
At his vicarage, Mr Rankin said he was aware of the allegations,
adding: ‘I’ve just got back from holiday. I’ve got no comment.’