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A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a large art piece of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video showed a individual placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and informed the court she was unwell, according to media sources, with the magistrate advising her to find a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in December.

A day after the reported event, the city leader said that repairs to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the stickers could not be removed without damaging the sculpture.

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

She said the council would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those responsible for the vandalism.

When the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its price tag and appearance.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the artwork depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.