earning the nickname putin's chef for his close work with the russian president, which went far beyond food, we should note. but this weekend he became the leader of an open insurrection. who is the head of the wagner mercenary group exactly? cnn's brian todd takes a look. >> reporter: the man recently videotaped screaming at vladimir putin's top military officials for betraying his mercenaries on the battlefield is someone used to the tactic of strong arming, threatening, ruthlessly taking what he wants. wagner group leader yevgeny prigozhin may have won over vladimir putin for displaying those traits rather than the fact that they both hail from the same hometown, st. petersburg. >> i think that prigozhin does have some personality traits that putin not only likes but also, i think, sees in himself. >> reporter: prigozhin's rise is a classic russian tale of brute force ambition. he served time in prison in the final stages of the soviet union for petty crimes.