Ex-UPMC Doc Accused Of Trying To Kill Wife Enters Plea

HONOLULU, HI — The former UPMC anesthesiologist and University of Pittsburgh assistant professor whom authorities have accused of trying to kill his wife last month by pushing her off a cliff while hiking pleaded not guilty.

Gerhardt Konig, 46, pleaded not guilty Monday to a second-degree attempted murder charge.

The plea is "a substantive response to the allegation that he tried to kill his wife," his attorney, Thomas Otake, said in a statement, ABC News reported.

"There, are two sides to every story, and thus far only one side has been shared,. The other side to this story will be shared within the court process at the appropriate time."

Otake said he also planned to seek bail for Konig, who has no criminal record.

Police said Konig was on Oahu with his wife on March 24 when he attempted to push her off a hiking trail and struck her in the head with a rock. She was critically injured in the attack.

The Daily Mail reported that Konig's wife, Areille Konig, 36, reportedly told authorities that her husband also had assaulted her with closed fists before attempting to shove her off the hiking trail. According to the Daily Mail, the couple has been married since 2018 and lives in a $1.5 million home in Maui.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Konig received his medical degree at Pitt and then spent nine years employed by UPMC as an anesthesiology resident and staff anesthesiologist. He then spent seven years at Pitt's School of Medicine as a clinical instructor and assistant professor.