jhancock@journalnet.com

BLACKFOOT - Police located a missing 19-year-old woman at an area residence on Saturday, but despite concerns from her parents that she may be coerced into staying where she is, officers did not remove the woman from the home.

"My detectives have talked to her face to face. At this time, she does not want to be bothered," said Blackfoot Police Chief R. David Moore. "She's 19 years old. We

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can't force her to go where she says she doesn't want to be."

Rachel May was first reported missing on Friday and her family said she was last seen Thursday afternoon. May was located early Saturday evening, according to a release from the Blackfoot Police Department.

"There is no foul play involved in the time period Rachel was missing. Rachel was voluntarily gone and reported as being missing," was written in the release.

Rachel's family isn't buying the voluntary part, however. Her father, Mark May, said he and the rest of his family are concerned about some messages coming from Rachel through her Facebook account.

May said messages sent from Rachel to friends through her Facebook account indicate she is scared to leave the residence she is at because of threats against her and members of her family, including her father.

"She's saying she is being held against her will and she is scared for her life," May said. "I think there is a fear on her part that something will happen to us."

Moore said his detectives knew about the Facebook messages since the family contacted his department on Friday, but his officers addressed that issue when speaking with Rachel.

"It's just not accurate," Moore said of the threats. "For whatever reason, she doesn't want to have contact with her family right now. She has exercised her right as an adult."

Because of the threats, officers worked nonstop to find Rachel since they were informed she was missing on Friday, he said.

"Until we could prove (the threat) wasn't true, we had to go with what we had," Moore said. "We took it pretty seriously."

May said he is perplexed by the idea that his daughter would decline to come home, and that there has been no falling out within the family to fuel a desire by Rachel to remain isolated.

"Not that we know of," he said. "That's why we are so baffled over all this."

Something else that doesn't sit right with May is the fact that all of Rachel's identification is still at the family home.

"She left everything here at home," he said. "She is a very responsible girl. This just isn't like her."

Until he sees her face to face and hears the words from Rachel, May refuses to believe she is voluntarily remaining with the two men he believes are controlling her. That contact doesn't seem likely to happen, however, unless Rachel initiates it.

"The police won't tell me where she is because she is an adult," May said.