MADISON, Wis. – Authorities searching for a missing college student found a body Monday in a rural area about 10 miles south of where 22-year-old Kelly Nolan vanished last month after a night of drinking.

Police had not identified the victim late Monday morning, but Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain said detectives were investigating the death as a homicide.

Madison police Monday morning had focused their search for Nolan on a 3-square-mile area immediately north of the village of Oregon, just off Highway 14. DeSpain said that he was not aware of any specific suspects in Nolan’s disappearance and that the area was one of several geographical areas identified during the investigation as worth searching.

Nolan, a University of Wisconsin-Whitewater student from the Madison area, had been living in a Madison apartment for the summer. She was last seen early on the morning of June 23 after a night out with friends at Madison bars.

A cafe owner said Saturday that an employee reported seeing Nolan early on June 23 and had walked Nolan toward her home until they ran into another man who said he knew Nolan, according to Tom Paras, the owner of Amy’s Cafe. Two days later, when he learned of Nolan’s disappearance, the employee called police with the information, Paras said.

Police have released few details, saying they don’t want to jeopardize the investigation, and family members have said they were advised not to discuss details of the case.

Nolan’s sister April, 20, described her as fun-loving and creative, but said she had been going through a tough time after the deaths of their father in 2006 and their stepmother in May.

Nolan didn’t get the summer job she had hoped to find when she returned from school, and she had worked at the Orpheum Lobby Restaurant for about a week in June before being fired the Wednesday before she disappeared. Restaurant owner Henry Doane said Nolan didn’t have enough experience for the job. In the spring, she served 14 days in jail after pleading guilty to driving under the influence as a second offense.

Madison police were assisted in Monday’s search by agents from the FBI, Dane County Sheriff’s Department, K-9 units and horse search teams, as well as police agencies from Wisconsin and Illinois.

Nolan’s family offered a $10,000 reward for information leading to her return.