There should be ?Beware of thieves? warning signs at Horseshoe Beach according to a visitor who had $1,500 worth of belongings stolen on Thursday.

Aron Post of Boston, Massachusetts said his trip to Bermuda was spoiled by a very disturbing incident when his credit cards, cash, camera, prescription glasses and a change of clothes were stolen.

?I certainly did not plan to spend my last evening in Bermuda with my pregnant wife riding in the back of a Police paddy wagon back to Hamilton,? Mr. Post said yesterday.

?I believe that a warning sign at the entrance to the beach regarding thefts would be helpful to unsuspecting tourists as well some type of official patrolling of the beach.

?Prior to this event, I truly believed that Bermuda was a very safe place to visit, and therefore I let my guard down while visiting Horseshoe Bay.?

Mr. Post and his wife took a final swim at Horseshoe at 6.15 p.m. on Thursday, he said, however, when he returned to the beach he discovered that his backpack had been stolen.

?This was extremely upsetting,? he said. ?As my glasses were stolen, I was unable to see and I had no clothes to change into.?

He said while swimming, he saw a ?rather official looking? man in navy Bermuda shorts and a white shirt whom he assumed worked for the beach, hovering around the area. The man then exited by a wooded pathway.

?I am now confident that he was the thief, who grabbed my bag and disappeared into the woods,? he said.

?Because of the wooded trails behind the beach, it is very easy for a criminal to grab a bag and then disappear into the woods.?

The upset visitor also said the calculating thief waited until after lifeguards left work at 6 p.m. ?to prey on an unsuspecting tourist?.

Police were called and helped them look for the bag in the trees, he said, however, they could not find it.

?I must say that the Police were very professional and sympathetic,? he said.

?We used our last $25 to take a cab back to St. George?s.

?As I had no money, credit cards, glasses or clothes, our evening plans for dinner in Hamilton were no longer possible.?

A spokesman from the Bermuda Police Service last night encouraged all beach-goers, especially visitors, to be extra vigilant of their belongings at the beach and only take items that are really necessary.

?Do not take a lot of cash and do not take jewellery,? Police said. ?Most of the thefts at the beach are crimes of opportunity.?

The Police spokesman said 90 percent of the time when thefts occur at the beach it is because criminals see an expensive item lying unattended.