RICHMOND -- Richmond police are asking for the public's help in locating a man suspected of beating his girlfriend to death Friday.

A $1 million arrest warrant has been issued for Rodell Edwards III for allegedly fatally beating 39-year-old Latricia Peoples.

Edwards should be considered armed and dangerous and anyone who sees him should call 911, Richmond police Lt. Mark Gagan said.

Richmond police Detective Eric Haupt said today that Peoples' 17-year-old daughter had tried unsuccessfully to call her mother's cell phone Friday morning. A few minutes later, the daughter received a call from Edwards saying he had her mother and she needed to come down and get her.

The daughter went downstairs and saw Edwards drive up. Her mother was in the back seat suffering from "pretty severe facial trauma," Haupt said.

Edwards then dumped Peoples on the front step of her apartment in the 300 block of 19th Street and drove off, Haupt said.

The daughter called 911 at about 9:45 a.m., police said.

Police and paramedics arrived and Peoples was taken to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek, where she died from her injuries Friday afternoon, police said.

An autopsy found that she died from blunt force trauma, Gagan said.

According to witnesses, Peoples and Edwards were boyfriend and girlfriend, Haupt said.

Edwards was known to police for several prior alleged domestic violence incidents involving Peoples and a few other women, Haupt said.

Police obtained the arrest warrant for Edwards on Saturday, but have not been able to locate him, Gagan said.