Justice Minister Mariano Cúneo Libarona resigns

Justice Minister Mariano Cúneo Libarona has left his position, President Javier Milei confirmed on Wednesday.  “Huge thanks Mariano, for these over two years of tireless work,” wrote Milei on his X account. The 64-year-old lawyer had been with the government since it came to power in December 2023. Milei also confirmed Buenos Aires City attorney general Juan Bautista Mahiques will be the new Justice Minister.  Mahiques himself thanked the president in his own X account “for his trust to take on this responsibility.” “[Milei’s] leadership has been clear in setting the path: without justice, there is no possible future,” he said, while also thanking Presidency Secretary Karina Milei — the president’s sister — for “her permanent support”.  Mahiques also recognized his predecessor’s work. Cúneo Libarona’s continuity at the helm of the Ministry of Justice had been in doubt for some time, with outlets reporting a race for succession for days. One of the country’s most notorious private criminal lawyers, Cúneo Libarona rose to fame in the 1990s when he defended Guillermo Cóppola, the former manager of football superstar Diego Maradona, in a drug dealing case.  His other high-profile work included defending two of former President Carlos Menem’s siblings-in-law: Emir Yoma, who was charged with illegal arms dealing, and Amira Yoma, accused of money laundering and drug dealing. He spent a brief stint in jail in the late 1990s for allegedly helping to cover for two policemen accused of stealing evidence regarding the 1994 bombing of the AMIA Jewish community center. He was released after one month, when the policemen were acquitted.