Doctor found guilty of attempted manslaughter after trying to push nuclear engineer wife off cliff in Hawaii
A doctor who tried to push his wife off a cliff in Hawaii has been found guilty of attempted murder after a controversial trial.
Gerhardt Konig, 47, was accused of trying to kill his wife, nuclear engineer Arielle Konig, 37, on her birthday in Oahu on March 24, 2025.
Prosecutors alleged Gerhardt pushed him to the side of Pali Puka Road and repeatedly beat him with a rock.
Gerhardt’s lawyers first claimed that Arielle attacked her husband. They said it was a case of ‘he said, she said’.
The anesthesiologist had previously pleaded not guilty to attempted second-degree murder charges, claiming he acted in self-defense.
A jury convicted him on the lesser charge on Wednesday due to mental or emotional impairment, ABC News reported.
During three weeks of testimony, Arielle said Gerhardt tried to repair the couple’s marriage after he found “flirting messages” between her and a co-worker.
He described his relationship as an ’emotional affair’ with his colleague that lasted three months.
Gerhardt Konig, 47, was accused of trying to kill his wife, nuclear engineer Arielle Konig, on her birthday in Oahu on March 24, 2025.
Arielle Konig, 37, accused her husband of attacking her with a rock after he syringed her near a cliff in Hawaii.
The couple went for a walk in Oahu last spring after Gerhardt uncovered messages about his wife’s ’emotional affair’
“I apologized,” he testified. ‘Obviously he was injured. I was committed to my marriage, to rebuilding it. This felt like a relationship to him. ‘This was an emotional event for him.’
Arielle claimed that after her husband laid her on the ground, he pulled out a vial and syringe and then attacked her with a rock.
The defense noted that police never found a syringe at the scene or any evidence that he tried to inject his wife with any substance.
She stated that while her husband was attacking her, she shouted, “Please help, he is trying to kill me.”
The attack only ended when two female hikers heard her call for help and called 911, prosecutors argued.
Gerhardt had fled the scene when two hikers arrived and allegedly called his son, confessing to attacking his wife and saying he was going to take his own life.
Arielle testified that she was treated for a ‘serious scalp laceration’ following the incident and showed pictorial evidence of her injuries during the hearing.
Footage revealed in court shows Arielle Konig injured after her husband beat her with a rock
Another photo showing Arielle Konig’s injuries was shown in court Thursday
The court was shown photos of the contents of Gerhardt Konig’s medical kit on Thursday; This bag also contained a syringe and a generic form of Propofol, a powerful anesthetic that caused Michael Jackson’s fatal overdose
Gerhardt’s attorney, Thomas Otake, previously argued that Arielle’s injuries were not as bad as they appeared, saying she only suffered a small laceration to her eyebrow.
However, a doctor from Queen’s Medical Center claimed that the woman had crushed tissue all the way to her skull.
Gerhardt told the court the couple had an argument over their relationship and the woman first hit him with a rock before wrestling each other.
He admitted hitting the woman with a rock but denied having a syringe in his hand.
The court was shown photographs of the contents of Michael Jackson’s medical kit, which also included a syringe and a generic form of Propofol, the powerful anesthetic that caused his fatal overdose.
Gerhardt also denied accusations that he tried to push his wife over the edge.
Her estranged husband expressed his sadness about the incident.
‘I was horrified by what I did to him, by what caused this, by inflicting violence on my wife, the person I love most in the world,’ he said.
‘And I felt hopeless about our relationship.’
Prosecutors alleged that Gerhardt plotted to kill his wife to avoid a divorce due to marital problems.
Konig feeds Arielle cake on her wedding day in 2018. The couple met on a dating app in 2016 and married two years later. They now have two little sons
The court was also shown Konig’s booking photo. He was arrested on Maui after fleeing the scene of the attack
It was also revealed that Gerhardt would gain $250,000 from Arielle’s life insurance policy in the event of her death.
Arielle filed for divorce in May 2025, seeking full custody of the couple’s young son.
Gerhardt has been in jail since his arrest in March 2025, about eight hours after attacking his wife. Medical staff privileges at Maui Health have been revoked.
Arielle and Gerhardt married in 2018, two years after meeting on a dating app.
His sentencing is scheduled for August 13.
