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A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after allegedly vandalizing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on Tuesday, facing with one count of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the September incident, the local council said that CCTV footage captured a individual placing artificial eyes on the artwork, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

The accused did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, according to media sources, with the magistrate 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 community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes were impossible to be detached without damaging the sculpture.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued community art is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in mid-September. “It is not innocent amusement, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”

She said the local government would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those accountable for the vandalism.

When the sculpture was initially suggested, it received varied responses from the area residents due to its price tag and design.

Priced at 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers inspired by an prehistoric anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.