I don't doubt that he said it...I just doubt that it is, in fact, the truth as he presented it.

Some time ago I found another quote of his, something to do with the fact he was fostered by another family, and he "accompanied" the father of this family on an effort by Germany to recover some of the wealth that certain families had essentially stolen from the German people. This could have been the root of his claim. Nor, did it represent a repeating action that he took part in. Just part of a narrative that he cultivated over the years.