It's a busy week in State College, PA. Penn State students are moving into dorms and apartments, touring campus, and preparing for classes, which start on Monday. Well, except for 13 students and former students who are facing charges for running one of the largest drug rings in Central Pennsylvania.
State Attorney General Dave Sunday announced the charges, which were filed after a year-long investigation by state authorities.
Two Penn State University fraternities are at the center of a cocaine trafficking ring bust, leading to charges against 14 people, authorities announced on Monday.
— CBS News (@CBSNews) August 18, 2026
According to the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, the cocaine was cut and packaged in the Delta Upsilon and… pic.twitter.com/6xZe8nJxRo
Drugs being sold on a college campus isn't exactly big news. What makes the Penn State story so shocking is both the sheer size of the operation and the fact that the frat bro cocaine cartel was completely run by students.
The AG's office alleges that pounds of cocaine were trafficked weekly from New York and Philadelphia to the Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi fraternity houses. Fraternity pledges were used to cut and package the drugs, which were then sold to students on campus.
UPDATE: Attorney General Dave Sunday announced that Agostino Abbatiello, the leader of a cocaine-trafficking ring involving Penn State University students and two student fraternities, surrendered Tuesday morning:https://t.co/AuB7IAkMuA pic.twitter.com/J0yaAlupvV
— PA Attorney General Dave Sunday (@PAAttorneyGen) August 18, 2026
Many notorious drug dealers are known by aliases or nicknames, like Scarface or El Chapo, and Penn State's cocaine kingpin is no exception. His use of pledges and underclassmen as drug mules has earned him the nickname 'Pablo Pledgescobar'. We don't know if that will buy the former accounting major any credit in the yard at the state penitentiary, but it is amusing.
BREAKING: Alleged Penn State cocaine kingpin, dubbed “Pablo Pledgescobar,” turns himself in & is denied bail. https://t.co/Kp6ZO5sfxZ pic.twitter.com/39R4w19pn8
— Polymarket (@Polymarket) August 18, 2026
Pablo Pledgescobar
— SMB Attorney (@SMB_Attorney) August 18, 2026
This dude was a Dean’s List accounting major at Penn State who kept a blog talking about his “passion for numbers and financial storytelling” and how he wanted to be at the forefront of the financial landscape.
He also cut his frat brothers’ hair on the side… https://t.co/5PE9pJupbL
I’m sorry, “Pablo Pledgescobar” is phenomenal https://t.co/Fg3COusGeG
— Aelfred The Great (@aelfred_D) August 18, 2026
The nickname… 🤣🤣🤣 https://t.co/EEHkVZZMYn
— Paul Zeise (@PaulZeise) August 18, 2026
Clever nicknames aside, Pablo doesn't look like the type who will do well in prison.
The trafficking ring's accused second in command, Thomas Robinson, didn't earn himself any quirky nicknames, but he does have the distinction of making his first big drug bust a family affair. His father, Paul, a Pittsburgh attorney, is facing felony charges for interfering with the investigation.
Father charged in suspected cocaine ring at Penn State is Pittsburgh attorney https://t.co/fHtAdCJv4d
— TribLIVE.com (@TribLIVE) August 18, 2026
A total of 14 people have been charged in connection with the drug ring, and the AG's office intends to prosecute them all to the fullest extent of the law.
The seriousness of these crimes cannot be understated. This was a full-scale drug-trafficking operation and we will hold those responsible accountable. https://t.co/rIVsZSM7wW
— PA Attorney General Dave Sunday (@PAAttorneyGen) August 18, 2026
Penn State has suspended Delta Upsilon but stated that Sigma Chi is not under the university's oversight. Sigma Chi's executive director stated that all of the fraternity's operations at Penn State have been suspended pending the outcome of the judicial process.
13 students via two fraternities stand accused of selling pounds of cocaine to Penn State students weekly. Including over a kilo of coke that was distributed at a single football game.
No wonder they call the place Happy Valley.