this is "nightline". >> breaking news, as trump takes indiana, thumping cruz who bows out of the race. >> we are suspending our campaign. >> the donald almost certain to capture which democratic nominee and a projected surprised win for bernie sanders. on the ground during the final moments of a an operation to free wild animals held capture for entertainment. more than 30 majestic big cats returning to their natural habitat in the wilds of africa. and watch as these dare devils do the unthinkable.

not only is this dangerous, it's illegal. this diynamic duo hangs from th crane high above the city of moscow. taking thrill seeking to dizzying heights.

♪

good evening, we begin with breaking political news. a triumphant donald trump, all but clenching the republican nomination tonight. the indiana win knocking riechbl t rival, ted cruz out of the race. and an impressive sanders projected win. >> reporter: at trump tower, even donald trump himself seemed humbled about where he stands tonight. >> it's been an unbelievable evening and year and never been through anything like this and it's a beautiful thing to behold. >> reporter: his land slide victory in indiana. >> it really looks like a massive victory and like we win all 57 delegates. >> reporter: clears away the last real obstacle to securing the republican nomination. >> just so you understand, ted cruz, i don't know if he likes me or doesn't but he is a tough,

smart guy. >> reporter: trump uncharacterestically magnanimous. >> from the beginning, i said i would continue on as long as there was a viable path to victory. tonight, i'm sorry to say -- it appears that path has been foreclosed. and so with a heavy heart but with boundless optimism for the long-term future of our nation we are suspending our campaign. >> reporter: cruz was clearly shaken. tonight he accidently elbowed his wife in the face, more than once. trump doesn't yet have the 1237 delegates he needs to win the nomination, but tonight even the

republican part ay chairman now acknowledges he will be the presumptive nominee. >> he's never been closer and he's doing it classically on his own terms. he is bending the party to his will and now is closer than ever to actually being the republican nominee. >> reporter: indiana was the last stand for the unlikely coalition determined to stop trump. the gop pinning its hopes on a senator whom the former republican speaker of the houses described as lucifer in the flesh. but five of cruz's former rivals preferred the deal with the devil over a victory for trump. >> 'lyin' ted' does not have the temp rmnt to do this. he's choking like a dog he's losing so badly. >> reporter: the past week has been the bitterest yet. the insults flying fast and furious. >> donald trump is the master

illusionist. he is the harry houdini engaged in an act of misdirection. trump is a phoney. sglur >> reporter: just hours before his concession, cruz went on a tirade. >> he cannot tell the truth but combines it with being a narcissist. a narcissist at a level i don't think this country's ever seen. >> reporter: last week in a hail mary pass, cruz broke with tradition, naming a running mate. >> my friend and the next vice president of the united states, carly fiorina. >> reporter: fiorina then proceeded to demonstrate how she'd become fond of saur made thing the cruz kids on the campaign bus. >> i know two girls that i just adore ♪ ♪ i'm so hanppy i can see them

more ♪ >> reporter: which didn't take long to become an interimanet m. ♪ i'm so happy i can see them more ♪ >> reporter: she'll now go down as the shortest vice presidential candidate in history, just six days, the most memorable moment, aside from that song, the moment she fell off the stage. >> she fell off the stage the other day. did anybody see that? and cruz didn't do anything. even i would have helped her, okay. >> meanwhile, trump was out there with hoosier heroes, including the hot head indiana head basketball coach, bobby knight. >> we got to talk about this presidential crap just for a moment here. >> reporter: and legendary fighting irish figures. >> i'm lou holts and i whole

heartedly indorse donald trump. >> reporter: and former basketball coach, donald phelps. cruz and carly just couldn't compete. it does seem like you guys would be a fantastic debate team but a presidential race is different from a debate, isn't it? it's a popularity contest and both of you have struggled with the charm factor. >> i don't find donald trump a particularly charming person and i don't find hillary clinton a particularly charming person either. >> reporter: now trump and hillary clinton are closing in on their perspective nominations but tonight, bernie sanders denying her the same kind of slam dunk moment trump enjoyed. >> let me just take this opportunity to thank the people of indiana. for giving us a great upset victory tonight. i know all the pundits thought we were supposed to lose but that apparently was not what the people of indiana concluded. >> reporter: tonight he's no

fringe candidate but he still has a steep uphill climb. >> it's inconvenient at best and embarrassing at most. hillary clinton will be the nominee. with almost as much certainty as donald trump will be the nominee. >> reporter: tonight hillary clinton's campaign calling trump the presumptive gop nominee, already using that to raise money. west virginia comes up next for the democrats. she tried to convince coal minors that she's fighting for them. by one measure, the race is still hers to lose. in raw votes cast so far in these separate primaries, she's still millions of votes ahead of sanders. millions ahead of trump too. but of course, that's not how this primary process works. come the conventions, the race starts all over again.

it's a whole new ball game. or maybe more appropriately, a whole new fall season for this presidential reality show. i'm david wright for "abc news now" -- "nightline." in indiana. in unprecedented air lift of 33 big cats in illegal captivity into the wild. except that managing my symptoms was all i was doing. and when i finally told my doctor, he said humira is for adults like me who have tried other medications but still experience the symptoms of moderate to severe crohn's disease. and that in clinical studies, the majority of patients on humira saw significant symptom relief. and many achieved remission. humira can lower your ability to fight infections, including tuberculosis. serious, sometimes fatal infections and cancers, including lymphoma, have happened; as have blood, liver, and nervous system problems,

serious allergic reactions, and new or worsening heart failure. before treatment, get tested for tb. tell your doctor if you've been to areas where certain fungal infections are common, and if you've had tb, hepatitis b, are prone to infections, or have flu-like symptoms or sores. don't start humira if you have an infection. ask your gastroenterologist about humira. with humira, remission is possible. ♪ when a car gives you sound you can feel... for an experience you won't soon forget. ♪ that's the more human side of engineering. experience what a lincoln can do for you. at the lincoln spring collection event. right now lease a 2016 lincoln mkx for 399 a month. only at the lincoln spring collection event. tonight, i present to you a very special bottle.

let's let it breathe. new classico riserva. with vine-ripened tomatoes, extra virgin olive oil and a hint of basil. classico riserva. open a bottle of the good stuff. poallergies?reather. stuffy nose? can't sleep? take that. a breathe right nasal strip instantly opens your nose up to 38% more than allergy medicine alone. shut your mouth and say goodnight, mouthbreathers. breathe right. unless you have allergies. then your eyes may see it differently. flonase is the first and only nasal spray approved to relieve both itchy, watery eyes and congestion. no other nasal allergy spray can say that. when we breathe in allergens our bodies react by over producing six key inflammatory substances that cause our symptoms. most allergy pills only control one substance.

flonase controls six. and six is greater than one. more complete allergy relief. flonase. 6>1 changes everything.

hot on the heels of ringling brothers recent decision to

retire their elephants after years of pressure and protests. we're are inside operation spirit and freedom. 10 years in the making. >> you come into perue with your wild animal acts, adi is going to come and get them. >> reporter: they're trying to keep these animals hidden. they're in the middle of a government crack down. they're working with authorities in peru to ban wild acts in circuses. we were given exclusive access. during the final days of this operation as they face off against circus owners desperate to hold on to their biggest stars. for tim phillips and jan freemer, the husband and wife team, their decade long fight to end animal suffering is finally producing results. >> as a routine and casual

violence to keep them in their place. >> reporter: their undercover investigation documenting horrific abuses in circuses, heched pa helped pass new laws in peru. >> they're kept in horrible conditions. and i think people said enough is enough. >> reporter: the rescued animals are all brought here to the secret compound. >> i love these old lions that are sort of indestructable. >> it's a temporary home for lions, tigers, even a bear, dozens of monkeys too. >> i think he likes blond. >> reporter: and while many can relax easily in the shade, there's no rest for tim and jan jumping into action with every

lead. today, traveling to northern peru, where a circus is rumored to still have a tiger. >> they have them under surveillance now just watching continuously. >> just a flock that way, it needs to be a complete surprise. >> reporter: and the authorities have just given the green light to move in. it looks very thin. >> reporter: but where jan see as malnourished tiger, the owners say it's much more than a circus attraction. there's what seems to be like a family there who owns or works with the animals and they're visibly distraught. >> they say they love the animal, but they're just making it stressful and difficult for it. >> reporter: they will not simply hand over the tiger and

the tempers flair as they get him onto the truck. the owners tell us they've never mistreated their animals. >> we understand this is difficult. frustrating and trying day. but we're driving away with a tiger and that's really the only thing that matters. >> reporter: back at the compound, one of the new luxuries for hoover to adjust to. >> the tiger is loving this bed. >> reporter: all of the animals receive first class medical check ups and much needed play time. >> about as much as we can do. we give them footballs and toys, try to keep them exercised. get the guys to play with them now and again. suddenly, they're all communicating -- >> the plan for the lions is to

return them to africa. generation donations funding new inclosures at a sanctuary in south africa. >> this will be the biggest air lift of its kind ever. you get word another circus, one that vanished has surfaced. >> we've seen it once before and it just disappeared. >> tim and jan believe it's the least holdout in the entire country but it's remote, so far from the reaches of government they don't know what kind of resistance they might find. you toedon't have a lot of poli support. >> there's some circus trucks right here. they took this down. they started breaking down. >> reporter: as we arrive, tim spots a puma. the family won't let him go without a fight. they say they've had him for 20 years and see this seizure as an

injustice. it's very tense, they're angry. >> they've asked them to surrender the animals. they've refused. >> reporter: and the family also insists they've never done wrong by their animals. the confrontation atraktcts a crowd. >> they've barricaded the mountain lien inside the truck. >> reporter: the authorities call in reinforcements. >> i suddenly look up and there's a little truck coming and it's full of riot police. >> things are starting to get heated. >> reporter: after hours of tense negotiation, angry defiance replaced by sadness and the family finally hands over the puma and says their final

good byes. do you feel any empathy for these families? >> the only empathy is that they're losing something they're fond of but i feel more sorry for the animals. they're the ones who are the real victims. >> reporter: after a few months at the adi compound, they finally release mufasa into their new homes. >> the dream would be to put these animals back in the wild but you can't do that. they had torn them from the ability to cope in the wild. >> reporter: at first they're t timid. but with each step, transformati transformation. they seem to take on the swager of animals that spent their whole lives in the wild.

but for the 33 lions, home is much further away. it's a complex move, each one individually crated. >> it's never happened before, taking lions from circuses in south america all the way home to africa. it's looike a fairy tail. >> reporter: strapped in for the biggest animal air lift of its kind and their final destination, big cat sanctuary. this homecoming, more than 10 years in the making. ♪

a long hard road but we're so happy. this is just so satisfying. it's everything. >> it was incredibly moving to have done this epic journey in the company of these magnificent animals and to see them step out on to the african soil for the first time was so moving. >> reporter: for "nightline," i'm marianau. >> and up exthnext, a viral vid you need to see to believe. how are you supposed to choose one? simple. you don't. at red lobster's create your own seafood trios, you get to pick 3 of 9 all-new creations for just $15.99. and with this many new flavors trust me, you'll be glad you can try three. like creamy baked lobster alfredo and grilled chimichurri shrimp and panko-crusted crab cakes bursting with crabmeat.

because some choices are hard, but this one, this one's easy. so hurry in before it ends! ya know, viagra helps guys get and keep an erection. talk to your doctor about viagra. ask your doctor if your heart is healthy enough for sex. do not take viagra if you take nitrates for chest pain or adempas® for pulmonary hypertension. your blood pressure could drop to an unsafe level. to avoid long-term injury, seek immediate medical help for an erection lasting more than four hours. stop taking viagra and call your doctor right away if you experience a sudden decrease or loss in vision or hearing. ask your doctor about viagra. dad, yoh no, i'll take you up to me off rthe front of the school. that's where your friends are. seriously, it's, it's really fine. you don't want to be seen with your dad? no, it's..no.. this about a boy? dad! stop, please. oh, there's tracy. what! [ horn honking ] [ forward collision warning ] [ car braking ] bye dad! it brakes when you don't. forward collision warning and autonomous emergency braking.

available on the newly redesigned passat. from volkswagen. (vo) what'scorn? dog food's first ingredient? wheat? in purina one true instinct grain free, real chicken is always #1. no corn, wheat or soy. support your active dog's whole body health with purina one. try cool mint zantac. hey, need fast heartburn relief? it releases a cooling sensation in your mouth and throat. zantac works in as little as 30 minutes. nexium can take 24 hours. try cool mint zantac. no pill relieves heartburn faster.

♪ and finally tonight, a view from moscow that defies gravity and no doubt several laws. as two dare devils scale a massive construction crane high above the russian capital. watch as these dare devils do the unthinkable. not only is it dangerous, it's illegal. this dynamic duo hangs from a crane high above the city of