WAUKESHA COUNTY -- After days of unanswered questions about the disappearance and return of a 15-year-old Town of Genesee teen, the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department released new details Thursday about the case.

Kathryn Stalbaum left home early on her bicycle Nov. 5, and went to the Goerke's Corner Park and Ride at Bluemound and Barker roads in Brookfield, Jennifer Wallschlaeger of the Waukesha County Sheriff's Department said in a statement. After telling a friend that she had missed the school bus and would be biking to school, Stalbaum took a bus to Chicago O'Hare Airport, where she stayed for the next three days. During her travel, Stalbaum did not sleep much and bought meals with her own money, Wallschlaeger said . Stalbaum approached a Chicago police officer Nov. 8 for help returning home.

Investigators and local volunteers immediately started an intense search for Stalbaum, looking for clues in the area around her home and the route she might have taken to Kettle Moraine High School. Dive teams also searched retention ponds in the area for clues related to her disappearance.

Wallschlaeger said she recognizes that the public has more questions about Stalbaum's disappearance, but will not release more details because she is a minor. 

\"We have a legal responsibly not to publicly report the details of juvenile matters,\" Wallschlaeger wrote. \"We want to continue to foster the relationship between missing teens and law enforcement so they understand that there is a safe place to go without other repercussions.\"