Ex-boss of Italys oldest bank accused of trying to intimidate exec right before his death latest twist in sordid suicide saga

The former chairman of the world’s oldest bank was accused Monday of ordering “an act of intimidation” against a top aide — right before his shocking death in a plunge from a third-floor office window in Siena, Italy.It was the latest twist in the saga of a death that was initially deemed a suicide — but in which the victim’s wife suspected foul play as the bank, Monte dei Paschi di Siena, was reeling from scandal, as previously reported by The Post.An Italian parliamentary commission said Monday that ex-chair of Monte dei Paschi Giuseppe Mussari sent goons to rough up the bank’s communications chief David Rossi in 2013, but didn’t intend to have him killed, the Financial Times reported Monday.A man named Gabriele Ceccherelli was accused of organizing the nasty job and selecting the attackers, who were not named.The matter is being referred to prosecutors, since it is not up to the commission to probe Mussari or Ceccherelli, said chairman Gianluca Vinci, a lawmaker from Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s ruling party.Mussari strongly denied the allegation to Italian TV, saying he would move to protect his rep in court, according to the FT.On the night of March 6, 2013, Rossi plunged from a window at the bank’s headquarters and died about 20 minutes later.A new forensic assessment concluded that he was physically assaulted by at least two people before the fall.CCTV footage showed up to two men checking out the body before walking away without informing the authorities, the FT reported.And a note with the words “I have done something stupid” was discovered in Rossi’s office at the time.A witness statement cited by the commission claimed that those behind the alleged plot has been “afraid Rossi might talk,” according to the Financial Times.It was not clear what information they feared he might reveal.The death came during a challenging time for Monte dei Paschi.

Mussari had driven the bank’s 2008 $7.5 billion takeover of Banca Antonveneta...