Former Penn State student from Westbury allegedly ran university cocaine dealing ring

Pennsylvania state prosecutors have charged a Westbury man and former Penn State student they described as "at the very top of the chain" of a drug trafficking operation to sell cocaine to students and fraternities at the university.

Agostino Abbatiello, 24, was charged as the alleged ringleader of the trafficking operation. Thirteen other people, including current and former Penn State students, face related charges. One student’s father was charged with dealing cocaine at Penn State fraternities.

Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said police issued an arrest warrant for Abbatiello on Monday, following a grand jury indictment on 11 felony charges including felony corrupt organizations, conspiracy, dealing in proceeds of unlawful activity and manufacturing or delivering drugs.

It was unclear if Abbatiello was in custody as of Monday night. A defense attorney was not listed and Abbatiello’s family could not be reached for comment Monday evening.

"There was nothing junior or childlike about this conduct. This was an upper-level trafficking organization," Sunday said during news conference Monday. "Multiple witnesses described Abbatiello as the largest dealer of cocaine for Penn State students."

Most of the defendants were arraigned in Pennsylvania state court Monday.

Abbatiello and four others face felony charges related to trafficking and eight defendants face misdemeanor drug possession charges. At least four defendants are current Penn State students.

The alleged activity happened at two off-campus fraternities, primarily between 2023 and 2024, when Abbatiello graduated, prosecutors said.

Witnesses told the grand jury that Abbatiello continued to run the operation and sold drugs to friends as recently as February 2026, according to court records.

Prosecutors allege Abbatiello, a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity at Penn State, and Thomas Robinson, of Delta Upsilon, were the primary suppliers of the operation. They would allegedly make several large pickups of cocaine in Philadelphia and New York to bring back to both fraternities, where the drugs were often cut and packaged for sale.

Abbatiello and other fraternity members allegedly had other fraternity brothers package cocaine, as well as pledges, who took part as indoctrination into the houses, Sunday said.

The drug packaging occurred off campus, prosecutors said, and the cocaine was distributed at frat houses, among friends and at off-campus parties, Sunday said.

Abbatiello kept a blog as a student, including posts about cryptocurrency and accounting. He described himself as an incoming senior on the Dean’s list for three consecutive semesters, "with a passion for numbers and financial storytelling."

"I will strive to be at the forefront of the ever-evolving financial landscape," he wrote at the time. "Beyond accounting, I enjoy hiking, cooking, and learning more about the financial market."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.