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A young person from Australia has faced legal proceedings after allegedly vandalizing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on that day, facing with a single charge of damaging property.

In a statement at the moment of the recent event, the local council said that CCTV footage showed a individual placing fake eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

The accused made no plea and informed the court she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge recommending her to find a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.

A day after the alleged incident, the local mayor said that repairs to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

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

At the time the artwork was first proposed, it drew mixed reactions from the area residents due to its cost and design.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial found in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.