an anesthesiologist Accusation of trying to kill wife A man struck by a rock with such force that fragments lodged in his skull while rock climbing near a popular tourist destination in Hawaii, a prosecutor told jurors before beginning deliberations Tuesday, a prosecutor told jurors before the start of deliberations Tuesday.
Deputy Prosecutor Joel Garner said Gerhard Koenig, MD, 47, planned and created a backup plan to kill his wife, Ariel Koenig, during a weekend trip to Honolulu for her birthday in March 2025. He tried to push her off a cliff, and when that didn’t work, he tried to hit him with a syringe Filled with some unknown substance.
And when that didn’t work, he grabbed the rock, Garner said.
“Every backup plan ends with Ariel’s death,” Garner said, showing photos of the cliff and his injuries.
The doctor’s attorney told jurors Tuesday that there was no such plan, and he repeatedly tried to cast doubt on Ariel Koenig’s account. Gerhardt König has pleaded not guilty to attempted murder, and insists that he was defending himself from his wife, who he says first attacked him with a stone.
Lawyer Thomas Otek suggested that if Gerhard König wanted to kill his wife and had access to a syringe in a remote area, would he not have drugged her and then thrown her off a cliff, rather than breaking into a scuffle while he was wrestling with her before attempting to fill the syringe?
“You will use the syringe first,” Otake said. “it makes no sense.”
tests began last month, nearly a year after Gerhart and ariel koenig Went on a hike on the Pali Puka Trail in Honolulu, which ended with her covered in blood and screaming that he had tried to kill her.
While the Koenigs traveled, their two young sons stayed at home in Maui. Near a vantage point offering a sweeping view, Gerhard König – upset by his wife’s relationship with a co-worker – attacked her, Garner said. It was only because two other pedestrians interrupted the attack that it stopped, Garner said.
Trial, livestreamed with testimony court tvhave circulated versions of what happened during the padayatra, as well as the couple’s marital problems during the padayatra.
Gerhardt König testified that his wife was having an affair, which he confirmed by unlocking her phone while she slept. This relationship, which Ariel Koenig characterized as an “emotional affair” that included flirty messages with a co-worker, came to light during the hike.
Ariel Koenig testified that her husband grabbed her and carried her toward the edge of the cliff but she threw herself to the ground in an attempt to catch herself. She said, he knocked her over and she had a syringe in her hand, but he snatched it away. She said she bit his arm and squeezed his testicles in an attempt to push him away from her.
Her husband denied pushing her over the edge and testified that he hit her on the side of her face with a stone. He snatched the rock and hit it twice in self-defence, he said.
“She reacted and then she felt terrible about it,” Otake said. “He never wanted to hurt her.”
But the prosecutor told the jury that all the blood found on the rock and clothes was Ariel Koenig’s, not her husband’s.
Gerhardt König also denied having any syringes on the mountain or attempting to stab his wife. His defense lawyer said that no syringe was found at the scene because he never had one.
Otek said that Gerhard König was not a man who would try to commit murder, but rather a man who was struggling with infidelity and trying to do the best he could. Otek referred to a heart-shaped birthday card Gerhard König wrote to his wife, calling her “the heart of our family” and saying, “The children and I hit the jackpot with you.”
Gerhardt König testified that when he saw his wife crawling away, he became convinced that his marriage and career were over, and he decided to jump to his death. But first, he called his adult son from a previous marriage. The son told authorities that his father had said he “tried to kill your stepmother” – a statement Gerhard König denied.
During that call, Garner said, the defendant made no reference to attacking his wife in self-defense.
He spent about eight hours hiding on the mountain before deciding to come down, Garner said, and even then tried to flee when confronted by police.
His wife has since filed for divorce.
This story contains discussion of domestic violence. If you or someone you know needs help, please call the US National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233.
