Young Australian Faces Charges for Supposedly Placing Sticker Eyes on ‘Blue Blob’ Sculpture

A teenager from Australia has appeared in court after allegedly vandalizing a sizable blue sculpture of a legendary being by applying plastic eyes to it.

The 19-year-old, aged 19, appeared remotely at Mount Gambier Magistrates Court in the state of South Australia on that day, charged with one count of damaging property.

In a statement at the time of the recent event, the municipal authorities explained that CCTV footage showed a person placing fake eyes on the sculpture, which locals have nicknamed the “Blue Blob”.

The accused did not enter a plea and informed the court she was unwell, according to news outlets, with the judge advising her to secure a legal representative before her upcoming hearing 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 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 community who have welcomed Cast in Blue.”

The mayor added the local government would pursue the “substantial” repair costs from those responsible for the damage.

At the time the sculpture was initially suggested, it drew varied responses from the area residents due to its cost and design.

Costing 136,000 Australian dollars ($89,000; £68,000), the sculpture represents a mythical megafauna, with the creators influenced by an prehistoric marsupial ant-eater discovered in nearby caverns that was “massive, lumbering and fascinating”.