Wagner group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin has launched a rebellion inside Russia, ordering his private army of mercenaries to seize key military sites. While he has not directly criticised Vladimir Putin, the Russian president has described Prigozhun's mutiny as “a knife in the back of our people”. Before recent events Prigozhin and his men played a key part in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, leading the onslaught in the city of Bakhmut. But as the fighting went on, he became increasingly critical of Russia's senior military officials, escalating from criticism to direct confrontation. The man nicknamed “Putin’s chef” went from selling hotdogs to being one of the most influential people in Russia.