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A young person from Australia has appeared in court after reportedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a legendary being by applying googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, aged 19, participated via phone at the local 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 local council explained that surveillance video showed a individual putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Blue Blob”.

Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and told the court she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to find a lawyer before her next court date in December.

A day after the reported event, the local mayor stated that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be expensive as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without harming the art piece.

“This intentional vandalism to a valued public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also disappointing to those members of our community who have embraced the Blue Blob.”

The mayor said the local government would seek the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the damage.

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

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; sixty-eight thousand pounds), the artwork represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.