An attorney representing a former Middle Township teacher accused in a sex-related robbery at an Atlantic City casino says his client did not participate in the alleged crime and was focused on her phone when it occurred.
Amanda Crafts, 35, of Wildwood, was arrested Oct. 9 and charged with second-degree theft and conspiracy to commit robbery. Her co-defendant, Veda Engel, 23, faces the same charges, along with a prostitution charge.
In an interview with BreakingAC, defense attorney Charles Peruto Jr. said Crafts went out that night to socialize and did not know Engel before the two met.
“I truly believe that she was there to party,” Peruto told BreakingAC.
The charges stem from an encounter with a man at an Atlantic City casino hotel. According to the allegations, the man went to a room with Crafts and Engel, where Engel performed a sexual act.
The man told police that Engel then used the facial-recognition feature on his phone to access his Apple Pay account and complete four transactions totaling $1,250. He alleged that Crafts restrained him while the transactions were made.
Peruto disputed that account, saying Crafts was using her own phone and was not paying attention to the interaction between Engel and the man.
“She wasn’t even paying attention to them,” he told BreakingAC. “She was on her phone.”
According to Peruto, Crafts voluntarily turned over her phone to investigators in an effort to show that she was online throughout the encounter.
The attorney said statements from both defendants support Crafts’ account that she and Engel had not known each other before meeting that night. He said Crafts had gone out after spending several nights alone while separated from her husband.
Peruto said Crafts plans to plead not guilty and will not accept a plea agreement. He also challenged the account provided by the man who reported the alleged robbery and questioned whether Crafts had any knowledge of or involvement in what allegedly occurred.
Crafts previously worked as a computer teacher at Middle Township Middle School. Superintendent Stephanie DeRose confirmed after Crafts’ arrest that she was no longer employed by the district but did not provide additional details. Peruto told BreakingAC that Crafts resigned from her position.
During an initial court appearance conducted by video from the Atlantic County Justice Facility, Crafts said she had been “in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Crafts and Engel were later released after prosecutors consented to their release during detention proceedings.
BreakingAC also reported that Engel has a separate prostitution charge pending from December. In that case, she is accused of offering sex for $1,000 to a man who was working undercover as a New Jersey State Police detective.
The charges against Crafts and Engel are accusations. They have not been convicted.
