Prosecutors are appealing the 60-day jail sentence handed out last month to a Lakewood rabbi convicted of money laundering from the special needs school for children he formerly ran.

The state Attorney General’s filed the appeal May 7, a little more than a week after Rabbi Osher Eisemann was sentenced to two years of probation in addition to the short jail term, a spokesman confirmed Friday morning. Prosecutors had sought a 12-year term.

Eisemann’s attorney, Lee Vartan said by phone Friday that his 62-year-old client is also contesting the sentence in the hope of getting the convictions overturned.

“Given the state’s decision to appeal, the defense had no choice but to do the same,” Vartan said. “We look forward to Rabbi Eisemann being fully vindicated before the Appellate Division.”

Eisemann was indicted in 2017 on theft, money laundering, corporate misconduct and misuse of government funds charges. He later resigned from the School for Children with Hidden Intelligence.

In February, a jury sitting in Middlesex County found Eisemann guilty of money laundering and misconduct by a corporate official. Prosecutors said he used $200,000 in school funds in a money laundering scheme designed to make it appear that he used personal funds to repay debts he owed to the school. The money was returned shortly after it was withdrawn.

The two appeals will be consolidated, according to Peter Aseltine, an Attorney General spokesman. The Attorney General’s Office hadn’t been notified as of Friday morning that Eisemann’s attorney filed an appeal, according to Aseltine.

While the rabbi is no longer involved with the school, he is advising parents in an “informal capacity from the sidelines," Vartan said. “He has 25 years of experience dealing with special needs students that can still be applied and put to good use.”

Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman.

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