In 2000, while he was serving as the Minister of Internal Affairs, Kravchenko became directly involved in the murder case of Georgiy Gongadze and the subsequent "Cassette Scandal."

Kravechenko later was the governor of the Kherson Oblast (2001—2002) and Head of the State Tax Administration of Ukraine (2002—2003).

From 1974 until 1978, he studied at the Higher School of the MVD of the USSR, and afterwards worked as a police inspector in the Kirovohrad Oblast.

In April 1986, Kravchenko became the head of the department for combating drug trade in the Criminal Investigation Directorate of the MVD of the Ukrainian SSR.

On 29 January 2013 a Ukrainian court ruled Oleksiy Pukach had murdered the journalist Georgiy Gongadze on orders from Kravchenko, who was seeking a career promotion.