Jul. 3—As two wildfires raged 75 miles away, the price of a room quoted by one Roswell hotel last month jumped overnight from $93 to $216.12, according to a complaint filed in recent days with the New Mexico Department of Justice.

Market forces at work? Or an unconscionable business practice?

Attorney General Raúl Torrez said Wednesday that a price gouging complaint is among nearly a dozen his office has received over the past week since his agency announced it would be looking into unethical business practices by hotels and motels during two Ruidoso-area fires that forced evacuations of thousands of people beginning June 17.

In response, Torrez’s agency has sent cease-and-desist notices to six hotels and motels in Roswell and Artesia, requesting “immediate cessation from engaging in business practices that violate the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act, which bars practices that exploit consumers during an emergency.”

The South Fork Fire and the Salt Fire were first reported on June 17 on the Mescalero Apache Reservation and forced the evacuation of the Village of Ruidoso later that day. At one point, the only route out was on U.S. 70 to Roswell, where many residents took refuge.

Torrez said his office is investigating cases in which people booked a room at a specific rate for a specific time period. “And then the rate they were ultimately charged went up. But we also have allegations that people had room (reservations) that were unexpectedly and inexplicably canceled. And when the rooms were re-booked, they were at a much higher rate.”

Cease-and-desist notices have been sent to The Baymont by Windham, The Clarion Inn, Days Inn, Holiday Inn and Home2 Suites by Hilton in Roswell. In addition, La Quinta in Artesia has also received a cease-and-desist letter.

“It doesn’t mean that they are absolved in any way from what they may have done in the past,” he said, “but it puts them on notice that their behavior has come to the attention of the agency and that we have a good faith basis to believe that some violation of this law has occurred.”

Along with complaints from consumers, Torrez said his office received information from employees at some hotels who reported witnessing conversations in which hotel managers talked about raising the rates, “precisely because the fires were occurring.” And because they thought they could get away with it, he added.

“I’m going to force them to justify the increases,” Torrez said. “If we are able to prove the allegations, they are also subject to a $5,000 civil penalty for each act that is proven.”

Torrez said his investigators will also consider rates charged for the same hotel rooms at the same time period last year, or over the past five years.

“We’re going to ask for all that information,” he said, “and if the only justification is that people in the next county are fleeing under a mandatory evacuation order, leaving with little more than what they can put into a bag, terrified, looking for a place to stay, and you’re taking advantage of those people in that moment, I believe that it’s an unconscionable trade practice. And we are prepared to file a lawsuit to recover monies.”

As of Wednesday, the South Fork Fire was 87% contained, while the Salt Fire was 84% contained. In recent days, flash flooding over burn-scarred areas has been the bigger concern.

Torrez said that with an increasing number of wildfires in New Mexico and other kinds of emergency events, his agency is likely to be engaged in “this kind of enforcement effort in the future.”

“We want to make it very clear that this kind of unethical behavior won’t be tolerated,” he said.

People can submit complaints of potential price gouging or other possible fraudulent behavior to the Department of Justice in either of two ways:

—Online: Go to www.nmdoj.gov/get-help and complete the complaint form.

—Phone: 505-490-4060, option 3.