A missing 21-year-old college student whose vehicle was abandoned in Madison County on Thursday has been found dead.

Police in St. Peters, Missouri, where the woman’s family lived and where she was last seen by family members, posted a brief statement on Saturday afternoon on Facebook.

“Melissa Oelke has been located deceased in Madison County,” it states. “This remains an active investigation, but we do not believe there is a threat to the public. We ask that you keep her family in your thoughts during this difficult time. Thank you to everyone who shared this post and offered your prayers.”

The statement didn’t give a cause of death.

Authorities had been searching for Oelke, who apparently left home about 7:30 a.m. Thursday, leaving her cellphone behind.

Oelke visited a Target store near her home that morning, then a Schnucks store in Chesterfield, Missouri, and then a Walgreens in Florissant, Missouri, according to her father, Gerald Oelke.

St. Jacob Police received a call about 12:30 p.m. on Thursday reporting an abandoned vehicle on Keck Road, about a mile east of Illinois 4. Interstate 70 is about 3 miles away.

Melissa Oelke attended the College of Creative Studies, a private art and design school in Detroit, Michigan, her father said. He noted that she had completed her midterms, seemed stressed and decided to extend her spring break and take care of her mental health.

Gerald Oelke also had speculated that perhaps his daughter was trying to return to school.

“Melissa has several medical conditions that require attention, and there is concern for her well‑being,” the St. Peters Police Department stated in a previous news release.

The search for Oelke had included Illinois Emergency Management Agency personnel flying drones over a wooded area near farm fields; Madison County Sheriff’s Office deputies riding all-terrain vehicles; a K-9 and his handler working the area; and an Illinois State Police plane circling overhead.