A FORMER fundamentalist church pastor who lost millions of dollars in investors' money through questionable property deals has become one of Australia's biggest bankrupts, going to the wall owing a massive $34 million.

But the real figure owed by Melbourne churchman and lawyer Glenn Duker could be even higher, up to about $40 million, because other debts that he personally guaranteed do not appear on his bankruptcy notification.

Insolvency experts say this probably puts Mr Duker among the 10 biggest bankrupts in Australia in the past decade.

Mr Duker, a former pastor with Melbourne-based Revival Centres International, threw in the financial towel on January 9 after seven years of living a rich life while losing millions of dollars of other people's money.

His church, Melbourne-based Revival Centres International, however, stands by him. Its deputy leader, Vic Semoilenko, told the flock in December that it was "sad that people (complaining about Mr Duker) could be so bitter, and it was sad that people could make so many errors and then want to blame others for their errors".

Mr Duker has listed his largest creditor as the National Australia Bank's low-doc loan company, Homeloans Ltd, which is said to be owed $12 million (though Homeloans Ltd disputes that it would have this exposure). Other commercial lenders are owed more than $1 million each.

Mr Duker also owes his mother $1.4 million, and his family's investment company $2 million.

Many of the bad debts were accrued after the Australian Securities and Investments Commission abandoned action against Mr Duker and his former property development company, RVP Group, in 2007.

ASIC accepted Mr Duker's promises to repay money owing to investors. Some did receive their money back, but others were left short, and only those who threatened legal action were repaid.

One Victorian victim said she was forced to sell everything after Mr Duker reneged on a personal guarantee of $150,000.

RVP Group, like most of Mr Duker's other companies, is now in liquidation, and the liquidator believes it traded while insolvent for much of its life. Other companies are under the control of his wife, Lorilea.

It is now clear, however, that, as an individual, Mr Duker continued borrowing and spending other people's money on property throughout 2007.

Former Sydney Swans player Craig O'Brien sold a $1.3 million Surfers' Paradise home to Mr Duker in mid-2007, but agreed to lend part of the sale price back to him, as long as it was repaid with interest. Mr Duker quickly tried to offload the house, then the bank eventually sold it at a loss to recoup their loan to Mr Duker, and Mr O'Brien saw no return.

He claims he is owed about $700,000.

Mr Duker foreshadowed his bankruptcy to Mr O'Brien a year ago in a text message that also said, "Sorry for your loss."

Mr O'Brien said the Dukers were living last year in a Brighton house, "paying huge rents, sending their kids to expensive private schools and both of them were driving brand new BMWs".

Asked for comment on the bankruptcy, Lorilea Duker told The Sunday Age: "I really don't have time at the moment and I'm really not interested."

Mr Duker began his investment business in 2002 after he was inspired by disgraced property spruiker Henry Kaye. Bankruptcy means he can no longer be sued by creditors, but his trustee, Dennis Turner of accounting firm PKF, said he could investigate whether any money had been hidden away in recent years.