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A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly defacing a large art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared via phone at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with a single charge of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video showed a person putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.

The accused did not enter a plea and informed the judge she was ill, as reported by media sources, with the judge advising her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.

A day after the alleged incident, the city leader stated that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be detached without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our community who have welcomed the Blue Blob.”

She added the local government would seek the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.

When the artwork was first proposed, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and appearance.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater found in local caves that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.