“The official end date of Ruslan Kravchenko’s business trip was Sept. 18. As of 2 p.m. on Sept. 21, he had not reported for work at the Prosecutor General’s Office,” Haiovska said.
Kravchenko lost only his administrative position as prosecutor general and formally remains a prosecutor at the office, she said.
Asked whether Kravchenko had returned to Ukraine and where he is currently located, Haiovska said she did not have that information.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appointed Anton Kovalskyi, head of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast Prosecutor’s Office, acting prosecutor general on Sept. 17.
Kravchenko’s resignation and dispute with NABU chief
Kravchenko announced his resignation on Sept. 7 amid a National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) and Specialized Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office (SAPO) investigation into alleged systematic bribe-taking by prosecutors connected to fraudulent call centers. Kravchenko described his resignation at the time as a “political decision.”
On Sept. 14, while still formally prosecutor general, Kravchenko publicly claimed he had signed a notice of suspicion against NABU Director Semen Kryvonos.
Kravchenko alleged that Kryvonos had been involved in document forgery and other offenses related to events dating to 2007-2008 and 2014. He also accused NABU and SAPO of taking files concerning employees of the anti-corruption agencies during searches carried out as part of Operation Carthage.
Kryvonos rejected Kravchenko’s accusations and said he had never been formally served with a notice of suspicion. NABU and SAPO described Kravchenko’s actions as part of continued pressure on Ukraine’s anti-corruption institutions.
Later on Sept. 14, the Prosecutor General’s Office itself said reports that Kryvonos had been formally notified of suspicion were false. The office said no person had been served with a notice of suspicion in that criminal proceeding because there were no legal grounds to do so.
Kravchenko had traveled abroad overnight on Sept. 14 in an official vehicle, law enforcement sources told Ukrainska Pravda. He subsequently confirmed that he was abroad on an official business trip. Ukrainska Pravda reported that an order signed by Kravchenko authorized a five-day trip to Paris.
Zelenskyy suspended Kravchenko from the post of prosecutor general on Sept. 14.
On Sept. 15, the Verkhovna Rada approved his dismissal by 317 votes, with no lawmakers voting against or abstaining. Zelenskyy signed the decree dismissing Kravchenko the same day.