A US university “frat bro” charged in an alleged cocaine trafficking ring was identified by police after authorities were tipped off that he was allegedly accepting digital payments for drugs under his own name.It’s been reported that when police descended on Thomas Robinson, now 23, he originally thought it was a prank. On Tuesday, US time, 13 former and currents students at Pennsylvania Statue University – known as Penn State – were charged with various crimes linked to a cocaine trafficking operation on the rural Pennsylvania campus. Mr Robinson’s father Paul Robinson was also arrested, reported the New York Post.Allegations include that cocaine was packaged up at fraternity house where students lived and was then sold to students. Fraternities and sororities are social clubs for US students which often include residential houses for members to live in while studying. While only a small member of students join “frat” or sorority houses, they often have an outsizes influence on campus culture and some have come in for criticism due to arcane rituals to join and murky membership requirements. The clubs have varying degrees of connections to the universities the students are studying at with some being completely independent.Authorities were told by a confidential informant that “a male, using the nickname ‘T-Rob’ is selling large amounts of cocaine from the Delta Upsilon Fraternity House,” according to court documents seen by US broadcaster NBC News.Alleged drug kingpin “T-Rob” was accepting payment through a Venmo account, popular in the US for digital payments, with the username “Tom-Robinson,” the informant told authorities, according to the court documents from 2024.A database search for “Tom Robinson” eventually led cops to a “Thomas Robinson” with an address for the Delta Upsilon fraternity house in State College, Pennsylvania, the outlet reported.When authorities raided the frat house in December 2024, Thomas Robinson, now 23, allegedly resisted arrest and “thought the officers were his fraternity brothers playing a prank on him,” the complaint said.He was Tasered and taken into custody, while a search of his dorm room allegedly turned up over 8 grams of cocaine, almost 8 ounces (227g) of weed, and more than 200 amphetamine and dextroamphetamine pills, used to treat ADHD, according to the complaint.A Kimber .45-caliber handgun was also allegedly found in a safe above his mini-fridge.Mr Robinson was charged in several incidents from September to December 2024, including drug manufacturing and delivery, criminal use of a communication facility, possession of a controlled substance, and possession of drug paraphernalia.Following his arrest, Mr Robinson reportedly ratted on his alleged supplier, fellow student Agostino Abbatiello, a member of Penn State’s Sigma Chi fraternity.Mr Abbatiello and “T-Rob” reportedly met through one of Mr Robinson’s fraternity brothers who was already allegedly dealing drugs, according to a filing on Mr Abbatiello seen by NBC News.That brother allegedly asked Mr Robinson to become “business partners in distributing cocaine” in July 2023, according to the filing.The unidentified frat brother allegedly told Mr Robinson he wanted out in December 2023, and told a grand jury that Mr Robinson had bought him out of the most recent cocaine supply they had purchased together.Mr Robinson allegedly made several large cocaine purchases from Mr Abbatiello between January and September 2024, including ones for $US18,000 ($25,000) and $US22,000 ($31,000).It isn’t clear whether Mr Robinson has entered a plea, and he is scheduled to appear in court next month for a pre-trial hearing in the 2024 case, according to court documents.Penn State University said it was placing Delta Upsilon on interim suspension amid the investigation in a statement this week, adding that Sigma Chi operates outside of the university’s oversight.“We are horrified by these serious allegations against current and former students,” university vice president for student affairs Andrea Dowhower said. With the New York Post.