NEW CONCORDIA — A man accused by neighborhood residents of exploiting a teenage girl was found severely beaten beside his vehicle after a late-night confrontation that left his nose broken and both hands badly mangled.

No arrest has been announced.

Residents reported hearing yelling before seeing the injured man inside or near his battered Buick. A teenager previously associated with him disappeared from the neighborhood that same night and later reached a women’s shelter.

“I heard him screaming,” said one resident who declined to give her name. “I looked outside, saw what was happening and decided I had suddenly become a very private person.”

Police have not publicly confirmed allegations against the injured man, and no charges related to exploitation had been announced before the assault.

The attack has reopened New Concordia’s favorite civic argument: whether residents should trust police, mind their business, or personally introduce terrible people to orthopedic surgery.

Investigators are seeking witnesses.

Judging by the block’s sudden outbreak of collective blindness, they may be seeking them for a while.