Teacher let go after casino room theft

A computer teacher at Middle Township Middle School lost her job this month following an arrest related to a robbery at an Atlantic City casino hotel. Amanda Crafts, 35, of Wildwood Crest, was terminated by the school district on October 19. She had been working in the school's special area department teaching computers.

Crafts and Veda Engel, 23, of Cape May, were charged in connection with an incident that occurred on October 9. Police reported that the victim met the two women at a bar in a hotel resort. After exchanging contact information with Engel, the victim went to their hotel room. Once inside, the women stripped him and restrained him to the bed.

Engel forced sexual acts on the victim before stopping and stating, "That’s what you get for $1,250," according to the complaint. While Crafts held the victim down, Engel used his facial recognition feature to unlock his phone. She completed four Apple Pay transactions totaling $1,250 to her account. A detective wrote in the affidavits that these transactions were made without the victim's consent in exchange for sexual acts.

During her first court appearance, Crafts told Judge Timothy Maguire that she was a teacher with no prior arrest record. Speaking via video from the Atlantic County Justice Facility, she said, "I was in the wrong place at the wrong time." Crafts also noted that she has four children.

The school district confirmed the termination in a statement on October 19. Superintendent Stephanie DeRose said the district's responsibility is to protect students and ensure staff meet expected standards. She stated that the safety and well-being of students remain the highest priority.

Engel, who works for SoFresh SoClean Commercial Cleaning in Ocean City, has a prior history with prostitution-related charges. Last year, she allegedly offered sex to an undercover state police detective for $1,000 at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa. She was released on a summons at that time.

Both women were released from custody on October 15 after being held for nearly a week. The state consented to their pretrial release, which requires them to check in with the court every other week.