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A teenager from the Land Down Under has faced legal proceedings after reportedly vandalizing a sizable art piece of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.

Amelia Vanderhorst, 19 years old, participated remotely 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 September incident, the municipal authorities said that CCTV footage captured a individual putting fake eyes on the sculpture, which residents have dubbed the “Cast in Blue”.

Ms Vanderhorst made no plea and told the judge she was ill, as reported by news outlets, with the judge advising 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 city leader said that repairs to the much-loved public artwork would be expensive as the stickers could not be removed without harming the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a valued 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.”

She said the local government would seek the “substantial” restoration expenses from those responsible for the damage.

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

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the artwork represents a legendary giant animal, with the sculpture’s designers influenced by an ancient marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.