Former volunteerism commissioner Yiannakis Yiannaki pleaded guilty on Wednesday to three of the eight charges he faces regarding the forgery of his high school diploma, university degree and other documents.

Yiannaki admitted guilt to charges 2, 6, and 8 of the indictment, which relate to knowingly circulating forged documents, specifically falsified lyceum certificates and university diplomas. The remaining five charges pertain to forgery and the circulation of forged documents.

During Wednesday’s court proceedings, an officer from the police electronic crime department presented a computer, a USB drive and hard discs as evidence.

The court was also shown a 2015 video from the education ministry’s website in which Yiannaki is heard claiming to have studied civil engineering.

The police officer testified that Yiannaki’s browsing history revealed 83 visits to the San Diego State University College website between June 3 and 9, 2021. The website allows users to request copies of their academic records, but police were unable to verify whether Yiannaki had done so.

During cross-examination, defence lawyer Petros Stavrou asked if the defendant had searched for the word “payment” while browsing, and whether police had investigated whether he had attempted to buy a degree.

The officer confirmed that such searches were found in the history. The officer also verified that Yiannaki had searched for information on term grades.

The next hearing is scheduled for April 8 at 10.30am, when two additional witnesses will testify.

Suspicions about Yiannaki’s qualifications arose when then-auditor-general Odysseas Michaelides received an anonymous complaint. The case gained widespread attention on social media after images of crudely altered documents circulated. One such image showed a high school diploma where the written score for modern Greek and English read “thirteen,” but the numerical figure next to it had been changed to “19” in pen.

Yiannaki has changed lawyers twice during the proceedings. His first lawyer, Yiannis Polychronis, walked out in November following a warning from Judge Gregoriou about contempt of court. His successor, Thanasis Korfiotis, later withdrew from the case, citing “ongoing disagreements” with his client.

In 2022, then-police spokesman Christos Andreou revealed that San Diego State University had no record of Yiannaki as a student. The university verbally confirmed to police that he had never graduated from the institution.

A picture of Yiannaki’s supposed bachelor’s degree in civil engineering, allegedly issued in 1992, had also circulated. However, the certificate bore the signature of Edmund Gerald Brown Jr, identified as the governor of California at the time. In reality, Brown served as governor from 1975 to 1983 and then again from 2011 to 2019 – meaning he was not in office in 1992.