A 20-year-old Maryland man has been arrested for the death of a 54-year-old Upper Macungie Township woman whose body was discovered Sunday in South Whitehall Township.

Caleb Gregory Barnes, a U.S. Army Specialist 4 stationed at Fort Meade, Md., was arraigned on March 16 on homicide charges in the death of Cheryl L. Silvonek.

According to the affidavit of probable cause obtained from District Judge Michael Faulkner's office, Upper Macungie police were dispatched at 4:15 a.m. March 15 for a suspicious vehicle with a large quantity of blood inside parked across from a home at 5702 Haasadahl Road, Orefield.

The affidavit states prior to Upper Macungie police arriving, it was determined the vehicle was in South Whitehall Township, and South Whitehall police were dispatched.

The vehicle was no longer at the Haasadahl Road location when South Whitehall officers arrived.

According to Upper Macungie Township Detective Adam Miller and South Whitehall Township Lt. Michael Sorrentino in the affidavit, while on location South Whitehall police saw the ground with loosely packed dirt and snow had been disturbed and the scene was immediately secured for further investigation.

At 5:55 a.m., Lt. Sorrentino determined a body, later identified as Silvonek, was buried there.

He notified the Lehigh County Coroner's Office and District Attorney's office, the affidavit states.

South Whitehall police located a vehicle matching the description of the suspicious vehicle, partially submerged in a pond in the area of Applewood and Huckleberry roads.

The vehicle, a green 2007 Ford Freestyle, which had a large quantity of blood inside, was registered to David L. Silvonek, of 1516 Randi Lane, Orefield.

Miller and Sorrentino state in the affidavit, officers responded to the Randi Lane home, where they spoke with David Silvonek and found a 14-year-old girl in an upstairs bedroom with Barnes.

The teen, who was interviewed by police, allegedly admitted to having a sexual relationship with Barnes on two occasions within the preceding 24 hours.

According to Miller and Sorrentino, David Silvonek, the teen and Barnes were taken to the South Whitehall Township Police Department where they were interviewed.

During the interview, Barnes allegedly admitted to stabbing Cheryl Silvonek in the neck inside her vehicle while it was parked at the Randi Lane home.

Barnes then allegedly told police he and the teen took Cheryl Silvonek's body in the Ford to the Haasa-dahl Road location where he buried her.

He and the teen then drove to the Applewood and Huckleberry roads location to dispose of or hide the vehicle before walking back to the Randi Lane home.

Barnes allegedly admitted to having sexual relations with the teen, the affidavit states.

During a press conference on Monday, Lehigh County District Attorney Jim Martin said a resident near the Haasadahl Road location was awakened around 4:04 a.m. by his dog barking.

He saw the Ford parked the wrong direction on the roadway and went for a flashlight.

Looking inside the vehicle, he noticed a large quantity of blood on the console, dashboard and rearview mirror.

He went back to his home and called police.

Martin said Barnes and the teen drove to Walmart in Lower Macungie Township and purchased alcohol, bleach and bleach wipes. They were seen leaving the store at 2:30 a.m.

Lehigh County Coroner Scott Grim ruled Silvonek's death a homicide and the cause to be multiple sharp-forced stabbed wounds to her neck.

Silvonek was pronounced dead 7:30 a.m. March 15 in the wooded area where her body was buried on Haasadahl Road, according to a press release from Grim's office. She was killed after 12:01 a.m. on Sunday, Grim stated.

Martin said the investigation suggests Barnes and the teen met several months ago at a concert.

Cheryl Silvonek apparently became aware of the relationship between her daughter and Barnes about a week ago.

According to Martin, David Silvonek did not know about the relationship and he was unaware of his wife's murder or that she was not in the house until police arrived at his home.

Martin said Cheryl Silvonek accompanied her daughter and Barnes to an Eric Church concert in Wilkes-Barre on March 13.

Barnes, who was on a weekend pass from the Army and scheduled to return to Fort Meade 8 p.m. Sunday night, has also been charged with one count statutory sexual assault of a juvenile and abuse of a corpse, Martin said.

According to Lehigh County Court records, Barnes was denied bail and is being held in Lehigh County Prison awaiting a preliminary hearing scheduled for March 20.

Silvonek's 14-year-old daughter is facing charges of abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and hindering apprehension in the death of her mother.

Upon hearing of Sivonek's death, the Parkland School District issued the following statement: "Parkland School District has procedures and practices available for any students in need of counseling.

"Parkland has made district counselors and school psychologists aware of the situation and stands ready to help students in need.

"In addition, the district has reached out to the Carbon Lehigh Intermediate Unit's crisis response 'flight team.'

"The flight team consists of specially trained professionals through the crisis management institute and come to help from various school districts when a particular district faces needs above and beyond the normal caseload.

"District and supplemental resources will be available throughout the day to assist staff and students process the information and assist them in getting the support they need.

"Other resources can also be found at: parklandsd.org/departments/student-services/safe-schools.

If any parent has a specific concern, they can call the child's school guidance counselor for assistance.