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A teenager from the Land Down Under has appeared in court after reportedly vandalizing a large art piece of a mythical creature by affixing plastic eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, 19 years old, appeared remotely at the local court in South Australia on that day, facing with one count of property damage.

In a statement at the time of the September incident, the municipal authorities explained that surveillance video captured a individual putting artificial eyes on the sculpture, which residents have nicknamed the “Cast in Blue”.

The accused did not enter a plea and told the court she was ill, according to news outlets, with the judge advising her to find a legal representative before her next court date in the final month of the year.

The following day the reported event, the local mayor said that restoration to the popular community sculpture would be expensive as the stickers were impossible to be removed without damaging the sculpture.

“This wilful damage to a cherished public artwork is unacceptable and disrespectful,” City of Mount Gambier mayor remarked in mid-September. “It is not harmless fun, it is pricey - it is also frustrating to those people of our society who have embraced Cast in Blue.”

She said the council would pursue the “significant” restoration expenses from those accountable for the vandalism.

At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew mixed reactions from the area residents due to its price tag and design.

Priced at A$136,000 (eighty-nine thousand US dollars; £68,000), the sculpture depicts a legendary giant animal, with the creators influenced by an ancient anteater-like marsupial discovered in nearby caverns that was “huge, slow-moving, and intriguing”.