Michael James Reuschel, 62, also told her he would let her live if she told police that someone broke into their house and attacked them.
A man was arrested in Gainesville on Saturday after deputies say he cut and stabbed his wife with a knife and held her down on a bed, preventing her from getting medical help as he cut his own arm, according to an Alachua County Sheriff's Office report.
The victim was taken to an area hospital, where she underwent surgery and survived.
Deputies said Michael James Reuschel, 62, was visiting his wife Friday evening in their shared residence to discuss their relationship after being separated for several months with each living in different counties.
Reuschel and the victim continued the discussion at a local restaurant where they began to argue vehemently early Saturday morning, at which point the victim ordered an Uber ride home.
After returning home, the victim went to a spare bedroom to avoid her husband, who arrived shortly after and continued the argument while the victim was lying in bed.
Deputies said Reuschel then leaped on top of the victim, pinning her down, before brandishing a knife and slashing at the victim’s right wrist, which began to bleed heavily. Reuschel continued to straddle the victim so that she couldn’t move as he stabbed her multiple times in the stomach, according to the report.
According to the report, the victim told Reuschel that he was going to kill her, to which he replied, “Yes, that’s exactly what I want to do.”
The victim, who was bleeding extensively and began vomiting, made attempts to sit up when Reuschel stabbed her in the neck before headbutting her as she made another attempt to sit up, the report said.
Reuschel then took the knife, deputies said, and placed it in the victim's hand before cutting his own arm with the blade. He then reportedly told the victim that they were both going to die as he lay down beside her so that she couldn’t move.
Deputies said Reuschel and the victim remained this way for about an hour as the victim pleaded with him as he continued to make threats to injure her further if she tried to move.
Reuschel then told the victim that he would let her live if she told deputies that someone broke into their house and attacked them, to which she agreed, the report said.
Deputies said Reuschel then put on clean clothes before attempting to stage the crime scene and before calling 911 to report that he woke up to discover his wife bleeding following her screams.
When deputies arrived, they began providing medical aid to the victim and took both the victim and Reuschel to area hospitals, where the victim was immediately admitted for surgery, after which she identified her husband as her attacker.
"It would've been a homicide, I think, had she not received the treatment that she got," said Sgt. Brett Rhodenizer, an ASO spokesman, during a phone interview.
Deputies arrested Reuschel early Saturday evening after determining that there were inconsistencies between his timeline of events and the result of their investigation.
Reuschel was charged with attempted homicide, kidnapping, destroying evidence and obstructing deputies.
He was taken to the Alachua County jail, where he remained on Sunday, with no bond.