Two New Jersey Women Charged After Allegedly Using a Victim’s Face ID for $1,250 in Apple Pay Transfers at Harrah’s Atlantic City

Two New Jersey women, Veda Engel and Amanda Crafts, have been charged after a casino guest said he was physically restrained in a Harrah’s Atlantic City hotel room and his phone was used to authorize four Apple Pay transactions totaling $1,250. For payments people, the detail that matters is simple: if a phone is unlocked with Face ID, the wallet follows.

1. The incident allegedly took place on October 9, 2026, after the victim met Engel at Caesars Atlantic City and exchanged numbers with her. Engel later invited him to a room at Harrah’s Atlantic City, where Crafts was also present.
2. The victim said Engel performed a “sexual act” with him, after which the women stripped him and physically restrained him to the bed. Engel allegedly told him that it was all he would get for $1,250.
3. While Crafts allegedly held the man down, Engel allegedly used the victim’s phone facial recognition technology to make four Apple Pay transactions to her own account. The victim said those payments were not consented to.
4. Crafts, 35, of Wildwood, New Jersey, and Engel, 23, of Cape May, now face theft and conspiracy to commit robbery charges. Both women have maintained their innocence and have been released pending trial.
5. At an initial appearance before Judge Timothy Maguire, Crafts said she had no prior offenses and was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Judge Christine Smith, who heard the case on Thursday, October 15, said she was surprised to learn that Crafts is a middle school computer teacher.

The case is a reminder that card-not-present fraud is only one part of the picture for PSPs and acquirers. If a wallet app sits behind a phone’s biometric unlock, the authorization surface is no longer just PAN, CVV, and 3-D Secure; it can be the device itself.