33. Rolf Mengele Refused to Betray His Father
With his father on the lam, Rolf Mengele was raised by his grandparents, who told him that his father had died. He was shocked to discover, at age 16, that his father was not only still alive, but was a war criminal at large. While rejecting his father’s beliefs, Rolf nonetheless sought to know him better. After years of secret preparations, he finally met Josef Mengele in Brazil, in 1977. His father downplayed responsibility for his war crimes and even argued that his conduct at Auschwitz had saved the lives of thousands. Rolf, contending that it was impossible to betray his father, never revealed his location. He did, however, change his surname in the 1980s.