Antoliano Peralta swears in the Vice Ministers of Justice and the Director of Penitentiary Services

Santo Domingo.- The Minister of Justice, Antoliano Peralta, swore in the vice ministers of the Ministry of Justice and the general director of Penitentiary and Correctional Services, Roberto Santana, who was appointed by decree 14-26.

While, according to Decree 30-26, Pedro Luis Montilla Castillo, Noelia Rivera Guevara, Noel Sued Canahuate, Juan Dionicio Rodríguez Restituyo and Delta Paniagua Féliz were appointed. These officials, together with Antoliano Peralta Romero, will make up the highest authority of the Ministry of Justice of the Dominican Republic.

The swearing-in ceremony took place at the headquarters of the Ministry of Justice, located on Gustavo Mejía Ricart street, corner of Agustín Lara, where the Patrimonial Fund of Reformed Companies (Fonper) operates.

The officials appointed by the president have been servers in other state institutions. Several of them were part of the team that accompanied Peralta Romero in the Legal Consultancy of the Executive Power since August 2020.

Pedro Luis Montilla Castillo, appointed as Deputy Minister of Attention and Collaboration to the Justice System, was a legal sub-consultant to the Executive Branch since 2020. He is a lawyer specializing in Public Law, a graduate of PUCMM, with more than 17 years in the practice of law.

You can also read: Antoliano Peralta is appointed Minister of Justice

He holds master’s degrees in Constitutional Law from the University of Palermo, Legal Argumentation from the University of León, and Administrative Law from PUCMM. He is currently conducting doctoral research at the Universidad del Externado on the tensions between democracy and constitutionalism.

Noelia Rivera Guevara, who was appointed Vice Minister of Judicial and Extrajudicial Representation, also served until February 2026 as a legal sub-consultant to the Executive Branch. Additionally, she serves as a professor of Private International Law and Public International Law at the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM).

Rivera Guevara is a lawyer, magna cum laude graduate of the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) and holds a master’s degree in International Legal Studies from Georgetown University as a Fulbright Scholar, as well as training in Economic Analysis of Law at George Mason University Center for Law & Economics and the Latin American and Caribbean Law & Economics Association (ALACDE).

At the Vice Ministry of Human Rights, Noel Sued Canahuate was appointed, a renowned lawyer and academic specializing in public law. In his more than 10 years as a public servant, he has held key roles in legal strategy and regulatory development in institutions such as the Legal Consultancy of the Executive Branch and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Currently pursuing a PhD in Law at the Universidad Externado de Colombia. He has completed various international programs in legal sciences, such as the Harvard Summer School of Legal Studies, the UGA School of Law Transnational Law Program, and the International Course in Critical Studies of Law and Society of the Latin American School of Public Policies of CLACSO.

At the head of the Vice Ministry of Public Policies, Juan Dionicio Rodríguez Restituyo was appointed, a prominent Dominican jurist, academic, and political leader. He has an extensive career in the legislative, community, and human rights fields. He holds a doctorate in Law from the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD), with a master’s degree in Economics, Business and International Relations and Senior Management in Political Parties, with more than 25 years of experience, excelling in criminal matters. He was a deputy to the National Congress and a councilman for the City Council of the National District.

Rodríguez Restituyo has worked as a consultant for national and international organizations, such as CONANI and UNDP.
Finally, in the Vice Ministry of Registry Affairs and Citizen Services, Delta Paniagua Féliz was appointed. E
Her work experience highlights her time at the Legal Department of the General Directorate of Ethics and Governmental Integrity (DIGEIG), her performance as a government expert before the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), and her work as a legal advisor to the Banco de Reservas, legal advisor to the Liquidation Commission of the Dominican Corporation of State Electric Companies (CDEEE) and a long career in private practice.

Roberto Santana Sánchez has been sworn in as general director of Penitentiary and Correctional Services, the body responsible for the administration of the national penitentiary system.

Santana Sánchez has extensive experience in penitentiary matters, both nationally and internationally. He is currently part of the Regional Penitentiary Academy and the International Forum of Penitentiary Experts. He led the process of establishing the New Penitentiary Management Model, initiated in 2003 and developed until 2016, which operated as an extended pilot that served as the basis for the transition towards a single penitentiary system in the Dominican Republic.