'Go and form an Ataa Ayi Movement' – Bridget Otoo defends Chief Justice nominee

Presidential Staffer and media personality Bridget Otoo has added her voice to the ongoing social media debate about Chief Justice nominee Justice Baffoe-Bonnie’s statement about sentencing notorious armed robber Ataa Ayi to 70 years in prison.

Addressing the Parliament’s Appointments Committee during the vetting on Monday, November 10, 2025, the nominee explained that the 70-year sentence was necessary to protect public safety and to ensure that justice reflected the emotional, social, and economic harm suffered by victims.

According to Justice Baffoe-Bonnie, judges follow sentencing guidelines, but there are certain crimes that demand stricter measures.

“In my youthful days, I gave somebody 70 years, Ataa Ayi,” he said. “If Ataa Ayi was given 30 years and came back, my family would be the first he would attack. So by the time he comes back after 70 years, I’ll be dead and gone,” he said. His comments have since sparked mixed reactions online, with some agreeing with his judgment, others accusing him of bias.

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In response to the online backlash, broadcaster Bridget Otoo came to Justice Baffoe-Bonnie's defense, arguing that his remarks were misrepresented. "He spoke in context. Beyond that, this hardened criminal killed mercilessly! He deserved death but got 70 years," she posted on X.

She proposed that those who view Ataa Ayi's 70-year sentence as unjust and unfair should form a movement for Ataa Ayi. “If anyone thinks Ataa Ayi’s sentence was unfair, they can form Ataa Ayi Movement”," highlighting the lasting trauma inflicted on countless Ghanaians by the notorious robber's violent crimes.

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Ataa Ayi, once Ghana’s most feared criminal, led a notorious armed robbery gang that terrorized residents in Accra during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was arrested in 2005 after one of the country’s most extensive police manhunts and was later convicted on multiple counts of armed robbery.