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A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a sizable blue sculpture of a mythical creature by affixing googly eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated via phone at the local court in South Australia on Tuesday, charged with a single charge of property damage.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage showed a person placing artificial eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst 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 next court date in the final month of the year.

A day after the alleged incident, the city leader said that restoration to the much-loved community sculpture would be costly as the stickers were impossible to be detached without damaging the art piece.

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

She said the council would pursue the “significant” repair costs from those accountable for the vandalism.

At the time the artwork was first proposed, it received mixed reactions from the local community due to its cost and design.

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