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A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, participated remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on that day, facing with one count of damaging property.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the local council said that surveillance video showed a person placing fake eyes on the artwork, which locals have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

The accused did not enter a plea and informed the judge she was unwell, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in December.

The following day the alleged incident, the local mayor said that repairs to the popular public artwork would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the art piece.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those people of our community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

She said the council would seek the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.

When the artwork was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the local community due to its price tag and design.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an ancient marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.