Survivors, relatives of victims, and members of the local Church gathered on Saturday 13 June to mark the first anniversary of the Yelewata massacre. The Catholic Diocese of Makurdi marked the anniversary with a memorial Mass. It was held at Yelewata in Guma Local Government Area of Benue State, and included the unveiling of a of a cenotaph engraved with the names of the 271 victims who lost their lives.

Presiding over the mass, the Catholic Bishop of Makurdi Diocese, Most Rev. Wilfred Anagbe, described the anniversary as a painful reminder of one of the darkest moments in the history of the community. “We are back today, exactly one year later, to pray for the repose of the souls of the 271 innocent people who were murdered here in Yelewata. We cannot forget them because they were our fathers, mothers, children, brothers and sisters,” he added.

In June 2025, more than 250 people were killed and more than 6,000 displaced after a spate of devastating attacks on mostly Christian villages in Benue State, a territory in the Middle Belt region of northern Nigeria.

In a conversation with Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) after the memorial service, Bishop Wilfred Chikpa Anagbe of Makurdi described the killing of innocent people as “a serious crime against God and against humanity” and demanded that those responsible for the attacks be brought to justice.

Within a couple of days of the attacks, it was reported that one suspect had been arrested in Benue State. At a press briefing, the Commissioner of Police in Benue State, CP Ifeamyi Enemari, revealed that the suspect was being interrogated and had provided valuable information to aid the investigation.

Towards the end of June 2025, media reports revealed a major investigative breakthrough that led to the arrest of 53 suspects, including key masterminds of the killings that shocked the nation. There have been no further reports about the case since March 2026 when proceedings in court stalled because one of the defendants had fainted.