Warning: This article contains details which some readers may find distressing.
A woman has described the frightening moment she alleges her husband tried to kill her on her birthday.
Anesthesiologist Gerhardt Konig is standing trial after being accused of attacking his wife, Arielle Konig, during a hike on Oahu’s Pali Puka Trail on March 24, 2025.
Mr. Konig has pleaded not guilty to second-degree attempted murder.
In court, Mrs. Konig told jurors the couple had travelled from their home on Maui to Oahu to mark her birthday, while also trying to address ongoing marital problems through couples’ counselling and individual therapy.
Arielle Konig, who works as a nuclear engineer, said she had hoped the getaway could be a
‘turning point’
in their relationship.
She testified that tensions had followed an argument linked to her husband discovering
‘flirty’ WhatsApp messages
she had exchanged with a colleague in December 2024.
“This was going to be a nice trip and kind of started the next chapter for us,” she said.
According to her testimony, as she stood roughly 10 feet from a cliff edge taking photos, her husband suddenly seized her by the upper arms and began forcing her backward.
“He said, ‘I’m so f—— sick of this s—. Get back over there.’ And he starts pushing me back towards the cliff.”
Mrs. Konig said she was initially stunned and believed he might be joking, until she realised he was seriously trying to move her.
“I was like, ‘What are you doing?’ But he had grabbed me really hard and was moving me. So we kind of wrestled a little bit, and I threw myself onto the ground because there’s a lot of trees and shrubs there, so that I could hold on,” she said.
She told the court he ended up on top of her, still attempting to push her closer to the cliff, and she noticed he was holding a syringe.
“He says, ‘Hold still,’ and I see the syringe, and I just kind of bat it away from us both,” she testified.
Mrs. Konig alleged her husband pinned her with one hand, while using the other to search through his backpack.
“He’s saying, ‘F— you, you’re done. I’m so, so sick of your s—, so done with you,'” she said.
She then told jurors she saw a vial in his hand as she screamed for help.
“I’m screaming, and he’s telling me, ‘Shut the f— up. Nobody’s gonna hear you out here, nobody’s coming to save you,'” she testified.
She said she fought to survive, including biting his forearm, and she begged him to stop.
“You can’t do it,” she said.
“Our kids will be orphans. You’ll go to jail and I’ll be dead.”
Mrs. Konig said he continued repeating threats.
“Again, he’s saying, ‘You’re done. We’re done with you. We don’t need you anymore. You’re done. You’re done,'”
She then told the court his demeanour appeared to change briefly.
‘calmed down,’
but she said he then
‘just starts hitting my face and my head with a rock.”
“I just started screaming, because in my mind, he’s trying to knock me unconscious, to be able to drag me over the edge,” she testified. “So I’m just screaming then as much as I could.”
She said she shouted for help, hoping someone would hear her from the trail.
“I do think I was saying something like, ‘Please help, he’s trying to kill me,'” she continued. “I’m hoping somebody can kind of hear that. And at some point, I hear a voice say, ‘We’re here, and we’re calling 911.'”
According to her testimony, a passerby called emergency services and her husband stopped, allowing her to crawl away. She said two people who came across her guided her down the path, and Mr. Konig was later located and arrested.
Mrs. Konig was taken to hospital for treatment for
‘severe complex scalp lacerations’.
She testified she believed her husband struck her up to 10 times during the alleged assault.