Hotshot-lawyer dad of accused Penn State cocaine ring member is charged in son’s frat house scheme

A hotshot Pittsburgh lawyer has been accused of trying to cover up an alleged cocaine trafficking ring run by his college-student son and other members of his fraternity at Penn State University, The Independent has confirmed.

Paul Robinson, 59-year-old managing attorney for the Meyer Darragh Buckler Bebeneck & Eck law firm, was arrested Monday along with his son, Thomas Robinson. Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday described Thomas Robinson as a secondary leader of the alleged drug operation.

Twelve other current or former Penn State students are also charged in the case, which involves alleged cocaine sales by members of the Delta Upsilon and Sigma Chi fraternities to Penn State students in 2023 and 2024.

The cocaine allegedly sold by Thomas Robinson and the other defendants was usually “ cut and packaged ” inside the fraternity houses “by fraternity brothers,” Sunday said during a news conference in State College on Monday. Fraternity pledges were also sometimes tasked with processing the cocaine, according to Sunday.

“The only non-student charged is Thomas Robinson's father, Paul Robinson, who we allege took steps to conceal evidence, including a safe containing drugs and cash, and obstruct this investigation,” Sunday told reporters.

In a prepared statement to The Independent , Robinson’s law firm, Meyer Darragh, said it was aware of the criminal charges against Robinson and was “reviewing the circumstances surrounding the matter.”

“The allegations concern Mr. Robinson individually and do not involve the Firm, its clients, or the legal services provided by the Firm,” the statement read.

“Because the criminal proceeding is ongoing, the Firm will not comment on the substance of the allegations or speculate regarding the evidence. Mr. Robinson, like every person accused of a crime, is entitled to the presumption of innocence and to have the charges determined through the judicial process.”

Paul Robinson, who clerked for Meyer Darragh while a law student at the New England School of Law in Boston and has worked there since graduating in 1992, was granted an unsecured $1 million bail “due to work obligations,” according to online court records.

The records didn't identify a defense attorney for either him or his son. Robinson didn't respond to email and phone inquiries from The Independent .

Robinson specializes in defending companies in cases involving transportation law, product liability and insurance claims, according to his law firm bio.

He was made a partner in 1997, and shortly after scored a “complete defense verdict” for a client whose co-defendants were hit with a $40.5 million judgment that was the state's largest of the year, the profile says.

Robinson comes from a family that owns an electrical contracting business in New Castle, Pennsylvania, and he previously worked in construction, which makes him a “sought-after defense attorney regarding workplace injuries and risk management,” according to his bio.

Public records show that he lives in a four-bedroom home that he and his wife, Laura Nee, bought in 1998 in a hilly, forested area of Churchill, Pennsylvania, a Pittsburgh suburb.