SOBOBA INDIAN RESERVATION - Riverside County sheriff's deputies searched for three carjacking suspects Wednesday on the Soboba Indian Reservation.

Authorities were called to the reservation by a construction crew working there who reported being carjacked by three men about 6:30 a.m. at gunpoint.

The crew was approached by the men, one armed with a handgun, another with a rifle, who stole their work truck, sheriff's Sgt. Dennis Gutierrez said.

The construction crew was not injured and tribal government assisted law enforcement searching the reservation for the carjackers.

For most of the day, dozens of sheriff's deputies and a SWAT team blocked off Lake Park Drive from the Ramona Expressway to Soboba Road as the Sheriff's Department established a command post to prepare to enter the reservation.

Three sheriff's helicopters scanned the reservation throughout the day.

By midafternoon, the sheriff's Special Enforcement Bureau SWAT team and a tanklike armored vehicle equipped with a battering ram rolled onto the reservation.

At 5 p.m., deputies arrested one man and interviewed and released another person.

Anthony Del Rio, 18, a resident of the Soboba Reservation, was arrested on suspicion of carjacking, Sgt. David Kurylowicz said in a report. He said more arrests are expected.

Sheriff's Capt. Glenn Worby said Wednesday's response was an appropriate measure for the situation and said operations of that scale have been used for similar investigations using support vehicles and SWAT teams.

"We treated this with the correct response given the threat to the tribe, the public safety and law enforcement," Worby said. "Every situation is different, and the tribe is not treated differently than anyone else. We would absolutely use the same response if the situation called for it."

Tribal officials said they assisted sheriff's deputies to identify the suspects and arranged for what they described as the "surrender and arrest of a non-tribal member."

"The Tribe was surprised by the show of tanks and scale of response deployed to address the incident," said a statement from the tribe that singled out Worby. "Despite the tactic, the Tribe worked for a more diplomatic and uneventful surrender."

The Soboba Casino remained open through the day and the police activity did not deter visitors as the parking lot remained full.

Golfers on the Soboba Springs course continued their rounds.

The roads were reopened by Wednesday evening.

The Sheriff's Department and the Soboba tribe have been at odds over access to the reservation.

In July, Sheriff Stanley Sniff called for the casino to be closed over safety concerns and threatened to bring criminal charges against anyone who impeded deputies in their duties.

In recent months, both sides have reported a cooperative relationship. Sheriff's deputies must continue to check in at the entrance unless in hot pursuit or responding to a 911 call.

Reach John Asbury at 951-763-3451 or jasbury@PE.com