An Oahu grand jury issued a bench warrant Friday to have a 46-year-old Maui anesthesiologist held without bail after indicting him for the alleged attempted murder of his wife, Arielle Konig, on the Pali Puka Trail on Monday.
Gerhardt Konig is now being held without bail at the Oahu Community Correctional Center after being indicted on one count of second-degree attempted murder for allegedly striking her multiple times in the head with a rock after trying to push her off a cliff, the Honolulu Prosecutor’s Office said.
The grand jury’s indictment and decision for no bail overrides a district court judge’s confirmation to maintain his bail amount to $5 million and the need for a preliminary hearing.
Arielle Konig was taken in critical condition to a hospital with injuries to the face and head.
She told police she saw her husband remove two syringes from his bag and try to inject her with an unknown liquid, according to court documents filed Thursday.
Konig said her husband yelled at her after she declined to take a selfie with him on the edge of the trail.
She backed away from him, and he then pushed her into the bushes, where he attacked her.
She told police that he used a rock to strike her in the head about 10 times, grabbed the back of her head by the hair and bashed her face into the ground, court documents show.
Two hikers heard her cries for help. One told police she witnessed a man with a rock in his hand standing over her, hitting her on the head. The other called 911.
“This indictment reflects the serious nature of crime that is alleged in this case,” Honolulu Prosecutor Steve Alm said in a news release.
“Domestic abuse cannot be tolerated. Our office is committed to ensuring that justice is served for the victim and that the defendant is held accountable.”
The couple has two sons, ages 4 and 3, together, and Gerhardt Konig has an older son from a previous marriage, according to Christina Ferguson, who does housecleaning for the couple at their Kahului home and has become a friend of Arielle Konig, who works from home.
The 36-year-old’s LinkedIn page says she is a project manager for TerraPower, a nuclear innovation company. It says she has a background in nuclear engineering, project management and product management.
Ferguson said the couple moved to Maui about two years ago from Pittsburgh.
Gerhardt Konig had worked in Pittsburgh as an assistant professor and clinical instructor at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, and previously as an anesthesiologist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, according to his LinkedIn page.
Konig works for an independent contractor providing medical services to various medical facilities on Maui, including Maui Memorial Medical Center. His staff privileges from the hospital were suspended pending investigation.
Deputy Prosecutors Joel Garner and Erica Candelario are handling the case.
Alm urges victims of domestic abuse to call 911 or the Domestic Violence Action Center at 808-531-3771 on Oahu or toll-free at 800-690-6200 of via text message at 605-956-5680.
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For more information on resources, go to domesticviolenceaction center.org.
