that victim who said he actually wasn't asleep. he was waiting to start work bright and early when he was suddenly ambushed by three would-be robbers with hammers. on this exclusive video you'll only see on eyewitness news, those suspects quickly learned they picked the wrong guy. >> reporter: pegged as an easy target sitting in his car in this parking lot, he noticed three suspects circling around. the trio approached his vehicle with hammers and tried to pin him in place with another car. he rammed their vehicle to escape and circled around for payback. in this shocking exclusive video you'll only see on eyewitness news, kofi claims he lost control of his van before it collided with this nearby wall. with the tables now turned, he wasn't going to let these guys get away. with one suspect detained, he returned for a third suspect with the box cutter and ordered the remaining two to drop their pants until police arrived.

and treated at a nearby hospital for their injuries. they're facing robbery charges. >> my life was at risk. i want to do whatever is necessary to protect myself. it's not like you came at me -- you have a weapon, but it's not a gun. if you shoot me with a gun, i'm dead. there's no pain. but you're coming at me with a hammer. which means you intend to cause serious harm. >> one suspect does remain at large. police are asking anyone with information to give them a call. aj ross, channel 7 eyewitness news. now to the latest fallout from the federal investigation, mayor de blasio's election fundraising in the nypd. a veteran nypd leader, deputy chief andrew capul transferred and reassigned to an administrative position. four other nypd commanders also punished. the fbi and u.s. attorney looking in to whether they were paid off for special favors. as for mayor de blasio, the case he said on monday he wouldn't talk about anymore, he's talking about again. eyewitness news reporter n.j.

the story. >> it didn't take long. the mayor says he's prepared and willing to cooperate with the investigation though he admits tonight he knows next to nothing about it. >> reporter: there may be no one in the city more eager to know what's happening in the office than the mayor of new york. which is why he hired a lawyer to make a call. >> we hold ourselves to a high standard. we always have. that's why i was happy to tell them to call and ask for help. >> reporter: sources say deputy chief andrew capul of manhattan north attended the super bowl in 2010. there are questions tonight about how he got his tickets. capul is one of five top commanders transferred in the widening shakeup. two of the five have been stripped of their guns and badges.

66th precinct detective michael malicci was placed on modified duty after he refused to testify before a grand jury. at issue, whether any or all of the men traded favors for from businessmen in borough park. the investigation said to be focused on those men, both reportedly befriended nypd chief of department phil banks and contributed to the mayor's 2013 campaign. sources say the case began with an investigation in to an alleged ponzi scheme, the now defunct hudson river cafe where the businessmen were reportedly victims. that led to questions about their contributions and wire taps reportedly exposed their relationships to the nypd commanders. the mayor says donors are not entitled to favoritism. >> someone donation, that's their choice. return. >> reporter: former mayor david dinkins.

access, not necessarily favors. i've been mayor, raised a lot of money from a lot of people, and no one has ever accused me of the kind of allegations being made against my friend bill de blasio. >> reporter: the attorney for the mayor's 2013 campaign, barry burke, declined to discuss his conversations with prosecutors. the mayor says neither he nor his staff have been asked to provide anything to the u.s. attorney's office. live tonight in lower manhattan, n.j. burkett, channel 7 eyewitness news. now to vote 2016. new york matters. the state can finally say that about its presidential primary next tuesday, this after a 40-year political drought where new york didn't much matter. for the democrats, hillary clinton endorsed by the daily news. bernie sanders received the endorsement of the transit workers union. trump tomorrow headlines a republican dinner and there is controversy. but first eyewitness news

sanders' rally in washington square park tonight. >> greenwichville has -- greenwich where it has been locked down for most of the day. streets locked down for blocks and blocks. we can show you from newscopter7 the scene overhead as thousands of people wait to get inside the park which tonight will be the center of the political universe. >> reporter: bernie sanders supporters have been lining up for hours at washington square park waiting for what could be one of his best attended rallies yet nationwide. >> i'm ecstatic. i feel the electricity and the environment and it just feels great to be apart of it. >> he's real. he's honest. he's been committed for a very long time. and he's going to win. >> reporter: the vermont senator spent the day crisscrossing the city, picketing with verizon workers who walked off the job this morning and making a bold prediction.

here in new york city. and we're going to win here in new york state. >> reporter: he's still trailing hillary clinton by 10 points in the latest poll though that gap has narrowed significantly in recent weeks. clinton campaigned with the reverend al sharpton, focusing her attention on republican frontrunner donald trump. >> it's the same donald trump who led the insidious birther movement to delegit delegitemize president obama and the list goes on. >> sanders and clinton have been basically circling each other throughout the city all day. in the past hour clinton showed up at this verizon picket line

the verizon protesters. tomorrow sanders will appear to give a speech in harlem. back to a live look here in washington square park, some of the bernie sanders supporters have already been allowed in. there's tremendous security, long lines snaking all through greenwich village at this hour. the event doesn't start until 7:00. there's entertainment. it will be going on for hours. we'll have all of it for you on eyewitness news tonight at 11:00. we're live in the village, josh einiger, channel 7 eyewitness news. now to the republicans. donald trump returns to long island tomorrow night headlining a gop fundraiser but there is controversy and it involves violence against immigrants. the fundraiser happening not far from the scene where that man, lucero, an ecuadoren immigrant was beaten. stacey sager in patchogue with

>> if republicans wanted some buzz over this fundraiser, they're sure to get it here in patchogue. it just may not be the kind of buzz they were looking for. it's because immigration activists are furious that donald trump was invited to this venue to speak tomorrow evening for protests. >> reporter: it's all about location and this location here in patchogue, they say, is all wrong for donald trump. shouting the names of immigrants who they say were beaten back in 2008 and remembering ecuadorian immigrant, lucero, murdered in a hate crime back then just three blocks away. they're calling on the republican party here in suffolk county to show more sensitivity and cancel trump's scheduled speech tomorrow evening. >> this is not a reality show.

these are real people, human beings with flesh and blood. >> reporter: the chair of the republican party says trump is entitled to free speech that he supports their frontrunner. >> donald trump isn't anti-immigrant. he's anti-illegal immigration. if individuals aren't happy about that or they want to protest that, they're more than welcome to do so. >> reporter: this patchogue resident says while he doesn't support trump -- >> i think anybody who's a legitimate candidate for president should be welcome anywhere in any venue, any town or any city. >> reporter: it will mean protests, road closures, and possible crowds. as republicans raise money, suffolk county will need to spend money. >> we'll deploy many of our specialized commands including services. >> the hope from both sides is free speech won't open old wounds in a community that had finally healed. >> because of where it's at is a raised level of awareness on the

do i wish it wasn't in patchogue? absolutely. do i wish i wasn't standing in front of you all right now? absolutely. >> we are back here live now outside the emporium on railroad avenue up the block from that infamous hate crime which has immigration activists so upset. we want to point out, republicans say this is a very popular venue mostly because of its size and location in central suffolk county. they say they did not choose this venue to be insensitive. as we said, expect protests. there will be numerous road closures in the area tomorrow including a parking lot that will be closed for people who use the lirr. so if you want all the information you need to know, you can go to abc7ny. we have all the closures for you and will be sure to keep you updated throughout tomorrow. meanwhile, trump himself getting ready for a rally in pittsburgh. it's going to start in less than an hour.

in pennsylvania. he held a rally that just wrapped up in erie. >> and am here today with a word of hope and encouragement. all across pennsylvania, all across this country people are waking up and help is on the way. >> republican john kasich also holding a town hall meeting in maryland this afternoon. still to come on eyewitness news at 6:00 for this wednesday night, we have an exclusive look inside a dna lab as workers try to identify about 1200 missing people in its case files, hoping for a big break in the case. >> and talk about a dive. look at that. the mets going for the catch. everybody all right? rob powers with the 411 in sports. >> beautiful day for baseball in queens. our temperatures running a bit below normal.

new at 6:00, it's not exactly a day to celebrate. missing persons day. it's happening saturday and the backdrop for this second annual event comes with staggering statistics. more than 13,000 reported missing last year in new york city. that includes 200 children. the dna lab at the medical examiner's office critical in finding missing people. eyewitness news reporter tim fleischer with an exclusive look inside that lab.

different races. these 13 individuals with the help of 3d facial recognition hopefully can come out of the shadows. >> we need to do everything we can to try to identify these people. >> reporter: for the first time, these victims, some of the coldest missing person cases, will be part of the city medical examiner's second missing persons day this saturday, a supportive event for family and friends of missing people. >> to give themselves the possibility of finding their long-term missing loved one and to get that closure that we know benefits families so very much. >> reporter: with the help of dna and other sophisticated testing in its labs, the medical examiner's office hopes to identify some 1200 people in its case files. blood relatives can give a dna swab which is then run through various national and local databases. >> to see if there's anything more that can possibly be done whether it's through the investigative side of things with law enforcement or through the scientific side of things.

sampson, chief medical examiner, says through the dna and information provided at a previous event in 2014, seven people were identified bringing closure to their families. >> the families who have had that closure are extremely grateful and that's why we do this. >> if you don't feel comfortable providing a dna sample here, you can certainly take this kit home with you and decide later or use it in the privacy of your own home and send it back to the medical examiner's office. you can also call in advance to learn suggested items to bring that might be helpful in the identification process. >> let's see if we can give this the absolute best shot that we can. >> reporter: so that the families of these victims and others can find closure.

american workers know how to fight back and rebuild an economy. so does she. we need jobs that provide dignity and a bright future. new penalties to stop companies from moving profits and jobs overseas. for businesses that create manufacturing jobs, a new tax credit. and let's invest in clean energy jobs, with 500 million solar panels installed by the end of her first term. a real plan to create new jobs and industries of the future. hillary clinton.

this is everything i have, my family. i got to see my dad die on national tv. they don't know what they took from us. people are dying. we need a president that's going to talk about it. i believe bernie sanders is a protestor. he's not scared to go up against the criminal justice system. he's not scared. that's why i'm for bernie. i'm bernie sanders and i approve this message. our pal lee was out for a couple days with a high temperature but instead he brings the high pressure with him.

[ laughter ] >> i'm going to try to stay at work as consistently as i can. [ laughter ] outside we go with sunshine over new york harbor right now. weather coming. you get a lot of bang for your buck with a car wash over the next couple of days. going to last for a while. since early march. we can go not only till early next week but if we miss a shower or then, maybe late next week. a south wind at 9. high today, 57. running a few degrees above average. no record warmth. in this type of pattern, even though i have a couple warm days, we don't have consistent well above normal warmth like march. some of the suburbs will be frosty tonight. barely below normal tomorrow. low temperature, 60. we'll be in the upper 50s. nice and comfortable in the afternoon. lots of sun, gradual warmup in the weekend. i think we can hit the 70s by sunday. coastal sections will be

places like montgomery and cold spring. we'll drop in to the 50s. interior new jersey, 55. 50 in islip. that freeze warning is to the hudson valley, connecticut, passaic. a frost advisory for much of interior new jersey tonight. tonight temperatures dropping to the low 50s. a few patchy clouds around overnight and they'll be leaving tomorrow morning. we'll be mostly sunny throughout much of the day but you have 42 in new york city, 30s in most suburbs and that morning chill will give way to a pleasant afternoon. there's the patchy cloudiness coming in from the west. that's conveniently timed for the overnight hours. after that, this system sliding to the south. this one is going to spend much of the week out west. we're in a great weather pattern with clear crisp nights and nice mild afternoons in the upper 50s and lower 60s. there's the patchy cloudiness moving out by tomorrow morning. it's a little chilly out the door with a spring jacket. maybe you're carrying it throughout the afternoon. with a north northeast wind it

shoreline. 42 tonight. patchy clouds. areas of frost outside the city. tomorrow is a nice day. sunshine for the most part. after that chill we're not far from 60. down to 42 tomorrow night. once again we'll go in to the 30s in many suburbs. your seven-day, 61 on friday. breezy along the coast. 64, great spring day on saturday. and then your 70s on sunday. mid 70s on monday. a little cooler. if we don't get that shower, monday night in to tuesday, we'll be dry right through late next week. so all the outdoor plans you have, you're good. >> 76 on monday. nice. rob is up next with sports. >> mets have been struggling a little bit. they've heard all the talk out there too. they do not like what they heard. straight ahead, day game at citifield and mets went all out to get back in the wind column. they hope strong play can match the strong words the skipper had to say about the perception of his team. plus tonight is the night for the rangers back in the playoffs. in new york state, we believe tomorrow starts today. all across the state, the economy is growing,

and the lowest taxes in decades, attracting the talent and companies of tomorrow. like in buffalo, where the largest solar gigafactory in the western hemisphere will soon energize the world. and in syracuse, where imagination is in production. let us help grow your company's tomorrow - today - at business.ny.gov at stop & shop, shoppers are discovering low prices by the thousands, plus a thousand more that just dropped. all these low prices! what are you trying to do,

no. just trying to save you a whole lot of "bread." [ laughter ] thousands of blue tags, thousands of low prices. my stop & shop. american workers know how to fight back and rebuild an economy. so does she. we need jobs that provide dignity and a bright future. new penalties to stop companies from moving profits and jobs overseas. for businesses that create manufacturing jobs, a new tax credit. and let's invest in clean energy jobs, with 500 million solar panels installed by the end of her first term. a real plan to create new jobs and industries of the future. hillary clinton.

baseball we know a game of numbers, and rob's got some numbers. >> the numbers have not been in the mets' favor, and their manager, we don't usually hear him get a little heated after games. we heard it today. lowest batting average in baseball. second lowest hit total. second lowest run total. 10 games in to the season, the mets made lead baseball in disappointed fans. back at it today to avoid being swept by the marlins. solid six innings. no runs on three hits. how about wilmer flores, first career game at 1st base. flores also smacked his first hit of the season and scored the first run of this game. kevin plawecki drives him in. in the 8th inning, watch mets outfielder yoenis cespedes try to make this play. he doesn't get the ball and everybody is okay but it gives you an idea of how badly the

another indication, a five-out save for familia. a nine-game road trip up next and terry was fired up. >> the perception is that there's no energy here, which is completely not true, that we're not prepared, we're overconfident or not taking things seriously. i heard that last night and it made me sick to my stomach. i said you know what, we've got to win this game today. we've got to show people we mean business. >> like the terry of old. yankees in toronto, it's pineda. brian mccann sits tonight after bruising his left big toe pretty good last night. beat the jays they lost to him 13 times. the bullpen has been as advertised. aroldis chapman on suspension. tanaka started winning five innings. barbado, shreve.

later on tonight. also tonight, round 1, game 1. nhl stanley cup playoffs for the rangers at pittsburgh. the penguins won the regular season series three games to one but the rangers have knocked them out of the playoffs two years in a row. lundqvist has been huge. right now finished the regular season 14-2 down the stretch. they would like nothing better than to send the rangers packing this year. >> it's a great team. we're meeting the hottest team since christmas. we're going to have to play our best. it's that simple. >> we caught up with former goaltender mike richter. lighting it up in river keeper colors. river keeper in its 50th year protecting new york city's drinking water. in brooklyn tonight, final game of the nba season for the nets. the knicks wrapped things up at indiana. a lost season for the knicks. a final 32-50 record. pacers beat them last night by 12. carmelo anthony sat it out, said

forward to his exit meeting this week with the front office. he wants input in the offseason decision-making process. >> my conversation with them is just to be kind of open and honest about what's going on, the transparency and how we can make the situation better. it's a big night in the nba for a couple reasons. the 170th day of this regular season and the warriors go for an all time record 73rd win. a win would put him past the bulls record. also big because it's the last time we'll see kobe bryant as a player. his 20-year career ends tonight. he hangs up the high tops. after one more games, lakers play the jazz. kobe will retire as the nba's third all time leading scorer. >> i feel really excited. very happy and looking forward to lacing them up one more time. >> and only one more time. >> glad he's not sitting the last game like carmelo anthony.

stories we're working on for eyewitness news at 11:00. a serial robber in nassau county striking again. new details from police on this latest armed attack. an incredible medical breakthrough. a man paralyzed from the waist down regains movement in his hands. we'll explain how this happened. those stories and more coming up on eyewitness news at 11:00. thanks for watching. i'm bill ritter. world news tonight with david muir is next. have a great night. see you at 11:00. breaking news tonight. the dangerous close encounter at sea. russian fighter jets coming within 30 feet of a u.s. warship. russian pilots refusing to answer radio calls from the americans. martha raddatz standing by. also breaking, donald trump goes to war with the republican party.