A small-town restaurant that survived COVID-19 is fighting to stay open after being hit with something that has been even more devastating – a case of fraud.“I'm angry because I've always wondered how people can let people take advantage of them and then I fell for that,” said Diane Korner.Korner is the owner of Korner Kountry Kitchen in Brookville, Indiana. She said a case of fraud cost them more than $100,000.“I’m hurt that somebody would do this to us and make us struggle,” Korner said.The restaurant was having trouble making payroll for the 25 employees and was a matter of hours from closing when things took an unusual turn. The community came together to raise about $10,000. It’s not enough to bail the restaurant out, but it has kept its doors open.“It's amazing,” said Kountry Kitchen general manager Amanda Merritt. “We've had phone calls, messages, there was a GoFundMe. They've helped with their donating.”The money came from individuals around town who don’t want the restaurant to close.“We come two to three times a week,” said James Wagner, who drives about 10 miles to get to the restaurant.Wagner said it’s not just the food, but the small-town flavor of the business that keeps him coming back. Before his wife died, he would bring her to the restaurant. He said one day he was cutting up a salad to make the pieces smaller for his wife.“So, Diane came over and said, ‘What are you doing?’” Wagner said he explained the situation. “From then on, she told the girls, anytime my wife ordered a salad, you make sure you got to cut it up real fine. She took care of my wife.”Those kinds of details are not overlooked in a small town.Korner said she is unable to talk about the details of the fraud case, but that local, state and federal authorities are looking into the crime.

Citizens are fighting back against crime.Many filled a meeting in Evanston on Monday evening to learn about ways they can stop it from taking over their streets.Some said they are feeling empowered to start right now.People form different neighborhoods joined police and city leaders to learn about what to watch for and what to do."We just want to make sure we have an idea of what to do when somebody suspicious comes in the neighborhood," neighbor Greg Turner said.With more than 350 shootings and at least 79 homicides in Cincinnati, neighbors are ready to fight back against crime.That includes Turner, who came looking for ways to protect his wife and neighbors."We live in a nice, quiet neighborhood, but right down the street it gets a little noisy, and there are things that I see on the news that happen there," Turner said.City leaders and Cincinnati police helped a packed room of people in Evanston's Recreation Center figure out how they can start neighborhood watch groups in the face of rising crime.Police encouraged people to mobilize and work with officers and their neighbors."We're seeing a tremendous uptick in certain areas of the city where the violence is increasing. One of the ways we can best combat that is to partner with the community. Start a neighborhood block watch where there's a general feeling in a neighborhood of somebody's got my back," Capt. Danita Pettis said.Police told people to observe, take notes of people and cars, and call when serious or violent crimes happen.They also covered scams and home security.Now, neighbors are talking and plan to take action."We want our neighborhood to be safer and like I said, go back to the way that it was when we first moved there, and we want to make sure we have the tools to keep it that way," Turner said.Cincinnati police said it's important neighbors be informed, alert and prepared.Officers said the national average is about one officer for every 2,000 residents, but not all are patrolling the streets and may be assigned to other beats.They said neighborhood watches reconnect people and empower conversations.Cincinnati police said when issues arise, people can call the non-emergency line at 513-765-1212, or 911 in the event of an emergency.Officers said it's always important people remain calm and state what type of crime is occurring along with details about the location, people involved and any vehicles, and elaborate if it is a serious crime or attack.