TRENTON, N.J. — An appeals court on Tuesday upheld the suspension of a former trainer who regulators said continued to work with racehorses while he was unlicensed.

The ruling by the two-judge panel left intact a two-year suspension and $1,000 fine for Charles Colasanti, who was first licensed as a groom and trainer in the late 1980s.

Colasanti was convicted of conspiracy to promote gambling in 1997 and failed to disclose that conviction when he applied for a license as an owner/trainer several years later, according to the ruling.

His application was rejected, but authorities contended Colasanti continued to engage in activities restricted to those licensed by the state racing commission by assisting in the care and maintenance of horses at a farm owned by his mother, including transporting the horses to and from Freehold Raceway and entering restricted areas.

In his appeal, Colasanti argued the suspension was excessive and that he was unaware the activities he engaged in were prohibited.

He also contended that the racing commission shouldn’t have considered his gambling conviction, which had been expunged in 2010, when he applied for a groom’s license in 2018. The appeals court rejected that argument, writing that his conviction “relates directly to public confidence in the integrity of an industry that involves gambling.”

A message was left Tuesday with an attorney representing Colasanti.