Fourteen people, including 13 former Penn State students, were charged in connection with a cocaine trafficking ring run out of two fraternity houses.
Of the 14 charged, one was a father to one of the students, while the remaining 13 were students at the 2023-2024 time frame when the alleged activities occurred. At least four of those arrested are still students. The operation was based out of the Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi fraternity houses, and its target market was Penn State students. The cocaine was allegedly cut and packaged in the two fraternity houses for distribution on campus.
“This was a coordinated and highly-profitable drug-trafficking crew revolving around two senior members of the fraternities, other fraternity brothers, and pledges,” Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said. “In fact, according to the evidence uncovered, cutting and packaging cocaine was, for some pledges, an indoctrination into the fraternities.”
“There was nothing junior or child-like about this conduct — this was an upper-level trafficking organization for this region of Pennsylvania,” he added.
The main suppliers were identified as fraternity brothers Agostino Abbatiello and Thomas Robinson, who would shuttle between Philadelphia and New York for “large quantities of cocaine.” The duo and two others, Mohammed Hurabi and Lars Zeepvat, were hit with the worst charges — felony corrupt organizations, conspiracy, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activity, and other related offenses.
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A fifth student, Robert Zanolla, was charged with felony conspiracy and criminal use of a communication facility. The remaining eight students face misdemeanor counts of possession and paraphernalia.
Penn State quickly announced that Delta Upsilon would be placed on interim suspension, while Sigma Chi is already not recognized as an organization and operates outside the university’s oversight.