AUGUSTA — An Augusta man arrested on drug trafficking charges Tuesday following a search of a Carlisle Ave. home allegedly sold cocaine to an undercover informant twice.

In a news release issued Tuesday, Augusta police Chief Kevin Lully said Marshall Mercer, 44, of Augusta, was arrested and an undisclosed amount of contraband and drugs were seized from the residential property; no further details were provided.

An affidavit filed in court Wednesday at the Capital Judicial Center in Augusta, written by Augusta Detective Benjamin Murtiff, said a confidential informant working with city police said  Mercer had been selling illegal drugs from his residence on Spring Street and had relocated to Carlisle Avenue, where he was allegedly still selling drugs.

Mercer has previously spoken out in Augusta as an advocate for people in recovery from substance use and who are homeless in Augusta, describing himself previously as executive director of Hope Brokers, a nonprofit recovery organization.

Police had the informant contact Mercer Feb. 18 to arrange a drug buy for $300. The informant met Mercer in the parking lot of Hodgkins School Apartments upon Mercer’s instructions, as he said he could not have any traffic at their house. Mercer allegedly sold the informant a plastic baggie containing white powder, which police later determined through testing was 8.33 grams of cocaine.

On Feb. 27 the informant again worked with police to set up a buy, offering Mercer $400 for “up” which Murtiff wrote in the affidavit is a common term for cocaine or any cocaine-based item. Mercer allegedly told the informant he had only half that amount, so the informant purchased $200 worth of drugs. The affidavit states Mercer sold the informant 3.69 grams of white powdery substance that tested positive for cocaine.

On Tuesday, the Augusta Police Department, with officers from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Maine State Police and the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, executed a search warrant at 17 Carlisle Ave.

In the release, Lully said an ongoing investigation had been underway into the illegal sale and distribution of narcotics.

Mercer is being held initially on $5,000 bail at the Kennebec County jail in Augusta, after he was charged with two counts of unlawful trafficking in scheduled drugs.

Carlisle Avenue runs off of South Belfast Avenue, which is also state Route 105, on the city’s east side. The property searched is located near the intersection with Malta Lane.