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A young person from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated via phone at the local court in the state of South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the local council said that surveillance video captured a person putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the judge advising her to find a lawyer before her next court date in December.

The following day the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the sculpture.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin remarked in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have embraced the Blue Blob.”

The mayor added the local government would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the vandalism.

At the time the artwork was first proposed, it drew mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and design.

Costing A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.