Yes of course he said that. What most people don't understand is that REE are "present" in every sample you can possibly take, in any kind of geology. He wasn't lying but he wasn't being very honest either. He was counting on the ignorance of his investors.
And current management IS DOING IT AGAIN!
And now lithium?
Are they deliberately trying to drive away savvy investors??
Yes, in the sense that returns were observed and that such was not anticipated - or the level of return was somewhat surprising. To date I know of no effort to further investigate or quantify.
As I recall the assay results . . . . I don't reemember if any REE's we specifically tested for, or if they were revealed as part of the process. JB addresses the topic in NR's at the time, in his usual Blue-Collar Scholar style and I am sure you can find them on Liberty's website.