John Asher – half @-@ Jewish and reluctant " defence attorney " at the trial ; fascinated by the capture of Bormann and the rumours circulating that Hitler may be alive , he had approached Nazi hunter Wiesenthal who directed him to Lieber ; despite being an " outsider " ( no ties to the Holocaust ) Lieber assigned him to the search party because of his military training and his clear @-@ headedness ( " no metaphysical lusts , no cravings for retribution " ) .