LITTLE ROCK, Ark.—Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel said Tuesday he has begun issuing subpoenas over spikes in fuel prices at 52 gas stations around the state as Hurricane Ike approached the Texas coast last weekend.

McDaniel said more than 1,450 people phoned his office with complaints and more than 2,400 people either e-mailed or sent text messages about suddenly high gas prices. McDaniel’s office said 10 subpoenas were sent to operators covering a total of 52 locations around the state.

The companies will have 20 days to respond to the subpoenas.

“In the event I find sufficient evidence of illegal price gouging, I will be making demand upon those entities to make restitution and pay penalties for the violations,” McDaniel said. “If they refuse, they will be sued.”

Some retailers bumped gasoline prices to $4.50 per gallon or more as Ike took aim on the Gulf Coast.

McDaniel’s office released a list of the 10 business owners, but not the specific addresses of the 52 gas stations being targeted.

He said the subpoenas seek information on what prices were leading up to the hurricane, how much the businesses paid for gas, and who authorized the price increases. Fuel companies commonly own a number of gas stations.

McDaniel said the highest price that his office logged in the state was $4.64 a gallon at a station in Osceola. He said that some of the price increases could lead to action under the state’s Deceptive Practices Act rather than the price gouging law.