By NEAL WAGNER / City Editor

Daniel Acker Jr. is now being held in the Shelby County Jail on bonds totaling $745,000 after Alabaster police on Jan. 18 charged him with two more counts of sexually abusing a child younger than 12 years old.

As a result of the two new charges, Acker is now facing five counts of first-degree sexual abuse. Police originally arrested Acker on Jan. 4 and charged him with three counts of first degree sexual abuse before bringing a fourth charge two days later.

Police said Acker previously admitted to molesting more than 20 students during his 25-year teaching career in Alabaster.

Police said one of the Jan. 18 charges came after one of Acker’s former fourth-grade students alleged he molested her in the classroom. The second Jan. 18 charge came after police said a victim alleged Acker molested her on a school bus when the victim was 9 years old.

From 1985 to May 2009, Acker taught in several Alabaster schools, including Thompson Elementary School, Creek View Elementary School and Thompson Intermediate School. After retiring as a full-time teacher in 2009, Acker served as a substitute bus driver until a few days before his arrest.

“These charges are the result of evidence obtained in our ongoing investigation into Danny Acker,” said Alabaster Deputy Chief Curtis Rigney.

Rigney asked anyone with information related to the investigation to call the police department at 663-7401.