SAN BENITO – A San Benito woman is warning others about thieves after her purse was stolen at a park.

She hasn't been back to a popular resaca trail in town, she said, after a morning stroll ended with shattered glass and her sense of security stolen.

It started out as a typical Friday morning, when she headed out to the trail near Heavin Park.

The woman parked in the small, designated parking lot and walked for about an hour and a half.

When she got back to her vehicle, she noticed the back window smashed-in.

"Somebody had broken it to steal. I had a couple of purses in there that were stolen," she said.  

Her personal information and credit cards are all gone.

She's surprised this happened at a public park during the day.

"I'm scared for my safety and my family's safety, you know," she said. "I have family and they are my priority, my concern." 

With summer right around the corner and activity picking up at the park, she's telling her story in hopes it won't happen to anyone else, "especially ladies out there."

"Be careful," she said. "Don't carry cash hide (and) hide your purses or something." 

San Benito Police Chief Michael Galvan told Channel 5 News that detectives have a few clues about the burglar, but he's still on the run.

The chief is not surprised about this crime of opportunity. 

"If someone wants something bad enough, or if they are trying to support a habit, whether it's drugs or whatever," Chief Galvan said. "If they see the opportunity and they want to take advantage, they will do it whether it's day, night. It doesn't matter."

People can make themselves less of a target, he added. 

"Even if you have change in your cup holder, you'd be surprised how many times people have broken the window and just taken the change in the cup holder," Chief Galvan said. "A pair of sunglasses, they could be dollar store glasses, but they'll even break the window to take those. So, anything that looks valuable, it's best not to leave it in plain sight."

Galvan said some of the woman's items were recovered near the outskirts of town.

She was able to cancel her cards before the thief could do anymore damage. 

Galvan is asking people that if they are going out to a trail, they try to carry the minimum in their car and only essentials on them like an identification and credit card. 

He's also asking people to become familiar with any emergency features on their phones in case they ever face a threat at a trail.