University of Kentucky Cheerleader Arrested, Cops Say Dead Infant Found in Closet

A competitive cheerleader at the University of Kentucky is facing criminal charges after cops say they found a dead infant wrapped in a towel inside a black trash bag in a closet ... and police say she's the child's mother.

The Lexington Police Department says 21-year-old Laken Snelling was arrested Sunday and charged with abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and concealing the birth of an infant.

Police say they were dispatched last Wednesday morning to a residence near the UK campus when a call came in for a "deceased infant located inside of a closet."

Cops say when they arrived, they found the child and pronounced the infant dead at the scene.

Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... Snelling told officers she was the child's mother and "admitted to concealing the birth by cleaning any evidence, placing all cleaning items used inside of a black trash bag, including the infant, who was wrapped in a towel."

The Fayette County Coroner's Office will determine the infant's cause of death after an investigation.

Snelling was booked at the Fayette County Detention Center and she posted $100,000 bond and is on home incarceration with no ankle monitor.