The alleged ringleader of a cocaine trafficking operation at Penn State University used an unpaid debt to recruit a fraternity brother into selling drugs, according to court documents filed by the Pennsylvania Attorney General’s Office. Agostino Abbatiello, 24, a recent alumnus from Long Island, is accused of calling in a $1,500 loan given to a Sigma Chi fraternity brother for a spring break trip, forcing the individual to distribute cocaine.
Larz Zeepvat, one of more than a dozen current and former Penn State students charged in the conspiracy, told investigators that Abbatiello trapped him into the scheme. According to the criminal complaint, Zeepvat stated that Abbatiello boasted about his earnings from cocaine sales and then made him deliver drugs when he could not repay the loan. Zeepvat also claimed that another individual owed Abbatiello thousands of dollars and was selling cocaine for him.
Investigators were told by Zeepvat that Abbatiello was the largest cocaine distributor at Penn State University between 2023 and 2024. Abbatiello surrendered to Pennsylvania authorities on Tuesday and is being held without bail. He and Thomas Robinson, son of a prominent Pittsburgh attorney, are identified as being at the top of the alleged ring.
Robinson, a Delta Upsilon fraternity member, reportedly purchased as much as one kilogram of cocaine from Abbatiello for $22,000. After his arrest, Robinson began cooperating with law enforcement and identified Abbatiello as his source. Abbatiello's father declined to comment on the allegations.