BELLEFONTE, Pa. – A former Penn State fraternity member testified Wednesday that he bought and sold cocaine in quantities that grew from 100 grams to 1-kilogram loads as prosecutors detailed allegations of a drug operation running through fraternities near campus.
The testimony came during preliminary hearings at the Centre County Courthouse in Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, for Agostino Abbatiello, Mohammed Huraibi, Paul Robinson, Thomas Robinson and Robert Zanolla. The five defendants are among 14 people charged in the alleged Penn State drug operation.
Charging documents filed by the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office describe a hierarchy of alleged suppliers, distributors and fraternity members accused of weighing, packaging and delivering cocaine. Prosecutors allege the drugs were brought to State College from Philadelphia, New York and Long Island before being sold to Penn State students.
Thomas Robinson, a former Delta Upsilon fraternity member, testified that he and Huraibi began buying cocaine from Abbatiello in 2023. Robinson said their first purchase involved about 100 grams of cocaine for roughly $4,000.
Robinson testified that he stored the cocaine in his fraternity room, where he and Huraibi broke it down into half-gram bags and sold each one for about $80.
He described additional purchases involving 250 grams, 500 grams and, eventually, about 1 kilogram of cocaine. Robinson testified that he began buying directly from Abbatiello through Snapchat after Huraibi stopped selling.
Robinson said the Snapchat messages disappeared after 24 hours. During one March 2024 transaction, he testified that Abbatiello sold him about 500 grams of cocaine for approximately $22,000.
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Robinson also testified that he purchased about 1 kilogram of cocaine from Abbatiello in July 2024, another kilogram in September and a third kilogram in November. He said he sold the drugs primarily to members of Penn State fraternities.
The complaints portray Abbatiello as a top-level supplier who allegedly used fraternity connections to distribute cocaine on campus. They also accuse him of supplying Robinson and other defendants.
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The defense challenged Robinson’s credibility and memory, pointing out that he used cocaine while he was selling it. Robinson acknowledged that his drug use could have affected his recollection. He also testified that he was arrested in December 2024 and removed from the fraternity shortly afterward.
Huraibi, another former Delta Upsilon member, testified that he and Robinson discussed buying cocaine in bulk to resell. Huraibi said they purchased 100 grams from Abbatiello for about $4,000 in August 2023 and 250 grams for approximately $10,000 in November.
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Huraibi testified that he and Robinson initially packaged the cocaine themselves, but that fraternity pledges later helped. He said he stopped participating after pledges became involved.
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The complaints accuse other fraternity members of supporting the alleged operation by helping package, deliver or purchase cocaine. One complaint accuses Michael Brogno Jr. of packaging and delivering drugs at Robinson’s direction. Other defendants are accused of using a digital scale, assisting with deliveries or buying cocaine from the larger distributors.
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Lars Zeepvat, a former Sigma Chi member, testified that Abbatiello’s alleged drug sales grew out of personal cocaine use. Zeepvat said Abbatiello later shifted toward selling cocaine for money and popularity.
Zeepvat also testified that Abbatiello sometimes kept cocaine in fraternity houses and apartments, where students gathered to use it. He described an alleged November 2024 delivery to Delta Upsilon involving a large brown bag that Abbatiello said contained about 400 grams of cocaine.
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The complaints also accuse Zeepvat and Zanolla of making trips to New York to obtain cocaine for Abbatiello. Zanolla allegedly helped transport the drugs back to the State College area.
In a separate hearing Wednesday, Ryan Matson testified that Paul Robinson helped retrieve a safe that had been hidden in the woods after Thomas Robinson’s arrest. Matson said Thomas wanted to keep drugs and money from being discovered during a potential raid.
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Matson testified that Paul Robinson knew where the safe had been hidden and helped him recover it. He said Robinson later urged him not to tell anyone about the safe. Under questioning, Matson acknowledged that he never opened it and initially withheld information from investigators because he wanted to protect Thomas.
Detective Donald Paul testified that investigators seized a safe from Thomas Robinson’s fraternity room on Dec. 13, 2024. The safe contained cocaine, marijuana, a handgun and Adderall pills, Paul said.
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Paul also testified that Thomas later told investigators the safe moved to Matson’s apartment contained about 100 grams of cocaine and between $5,000 and $10,000 in cash. Thomas said he eventually saw the safe at one of his family’s homes in Pittsburgh and later at another family home in Seven Springs, the detective testified.
Paul Robinson’s defense attorney argued that prosecutors had not established what was inside the safe when it was recovered from the woods. The attorney also questioned whether Robinson knew the safe contained drugs.
A judge ruled there was enough evidence for charges against Paul Robinson involving the alleged concealment or destruction of evidence, tampering with evidence and interference with a police investigation to proceed.
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Abbatiello, whom prosecutors have described as the operation’s largest alleged dealer, was granted $250,000 secured bail after previously being held without bail.
“I’m happy with the way things went today,” his attorney, Philip Masorti, said outside the courthouse on Wednesday. “My client’s going to be posting bail soon. And I think we saw the real, true Centre County justice at work. And it’s my pleasure to represent Augie Abbatiello and his family.”
The allegations have not been proven at trial. All of the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
Fox News’ Peter Cuddihy contributed to this report.
