RANGELEY – Men from Strong and Rangeley face drug charges after police, acting on a tip, confiscated what they suspect to be 54 grams of cocaine from their motel room, police Chief Phil Weymouth said.

The substance passed a field test for cocaine, he said, but needs to be analyzed at a lab to verify it.

Police officer Jared Austin arrested Theodore M. “T.J.” Suffoletto Jr., 27, Strong and Marshall Bartlett, 23, of Rangeley, each on charges of unlawful trafficking of scheduled W drugs – cocaine – and unlawful possession of schedule drugs, Darvocet, on Saturday, Weymouth said.

Suffoletto, who is also charged with violating conditions of release pertaining to other pending drug charges, Weymouth said, made an initial appearance at Farmington district court Monday and his bail was set at $2,000 cash or a $20,000 piece of property. His attorney, Kevin Joyce, told Judge Valerie Stanfill that Suffoletto’s fiancee could post the real estate bond.

He also faces a criminal forfeiture charge pertaining to cash that was seized. Conditions of release include no possession of alcohol or illegal drugs and random search.

Bartlett was released from the Franklin County jail in Farmington on Sunday after posting $1,000 cash bail.

Weymouth said police received a tip Saturday night that a drug dealer had come to town and set up for the weekend at a Main Street motel. The tipster indicated the motel and the room number where the person was staying, he said.

Austin, along with a Rangeley Border Patrol agent, went to the motel, the Saddleback Motor Inn, drove through the parking lot and spotted Suffoletto outside the room the tipper indicated, Weymouth said.

Austin knew that Suffoletto is a “known cocaine dealer,” Weymouth said, and has bail conditions that require him to submit to search without suspicion of probable cause.

The two officers knocked on the door of the room and Suffoletto opened the door, and Austin told him he was subject to bail check.

While in the room, Austin saw some usable marijuana on a coffee table and then conducted a search, the chief said.

In a dresser drawer, police found two sandwich bags containing cocaine, Weymouth said.

Police also found a digital scale, razor blade, two “toot” straws, a bag containing 21 Darvocet pills, another small bag of marijuana and an unidentified half of a white pill, he said.

Also confiscated was $1,050 in cash, cell phones, and a marijuana pipe, Weymouth said.

Bartlett was in the motel room with Suffoletto, he said.