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A young person from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly defacing a large blue sculpture of a mythical creature by applying plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.

Officials commented at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities said that CCTV footage showed a person putting fake eyes on the artwork, which locals have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the magistrate advising her to secure a lawyer before her upcoming hearing in the final month of the year.

A day after the reported event, the local mayor stated that restoration to the much-loved public artwork would be costly as the adhesive eyes could not be detached without damaging the art piece.

“This intentional vandalism to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” Mayor Lynette Martin said in September. “It is not harmless fun, it is costly - it is also frustrating to those members of our society who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

The mayor said the local government would seek the “significant” repair costs from those responsible for the vandalism.

At the time the artwork was initially suggested, it drew mixed reactions 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 depicts a mythical megafauna, with the creators inspired by an ancient anteater-like marsupial found in local caves that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.