Raynette Turner found dead in Mount Vernon, New York City Court building

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Raynette Turner, 42, died Monday afternoon in Mount Vernon, New York
Was being held underneath the City Court building on larceny charge
Husband Herman was waiting upstairs for her to appear before judge
Was left oblivious for two hours before authorities told him of the death
Not clear why Turner died - but she said she felt ill the night before
She is the fifth black woman to die in custody this month, including Sandra Bland in Texas

Published: 23:27 EST, 29 July 2015 | Updated: 00:30 EST, 30 July 2015

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A woman accused of stealing crab legs was found dead in a holding cell this week - the fifth black woman to die in police custody this month.

Raynette Turner, 42, a mother of eight, was found, lifeless, by officers in Mount Vernon, New York, on Monday.

No explanation has yet been offered for her death, but she had reportedly complained of feeling unwell on Sunday evening and was taken to hospital.

Found dead: Raynette Turner, 42, was found lifeless underneath the City Court in Mount Vernon, New York, on Monday. She is pictured right in an old photograph and left more recently

Police said she was only diagnosed with high blood pressure - but she was found dead at 2pm Monday as her husband sat upstairs waiting for her to appear before a judge.

Herman Turner, 49, was left obliviously waiting at the Mount Vernon City Court for two hours after she died, according to the Lower Hudson Journal News.

Mr Turner said the mystery surrounding his wife's death reeks of 'a cover-up' and said 'if they did their job she would still be alive'

'No one said anything to me about my wife was downstairs, dead.

'They just let me sit in the courtroom all day long, waiting for her to come and be seen by the judge.'

Local authorities are investigating Turner's death, and an autopsy is underway - though officials have warned it could take weeks.

According to the New York Post, Turner was arrested on Saturday after allegedly stealing a box of crab legs from a restaurant suppliers' store.

Found dead: Pictured is the building containing the holding cell in which Turner was found Monday afternoon

Mount Vernon police said she was arrested around 3pm and booked into jail on a petty larceny charge.

She told officers she did not feel well on Sunday evening, and was reportedly taken to hospital via ambulance and told that her only ailment was high blood pressure - but less than 24 hours later she had died.

Her death prompted an investigation by New York state's attorney general - the first of its kind under new powers granted to prosecutors to investigate deaths in custody.

Turner's is the latest in a string of custody deaths this month - and follows intense scrutiny of a Texas jail after 28-year-old Sandra Bland was found dead inside.

Authorities in Walker County yesterday released hours and hours of raw footage showing Bland being booked into the jail and spending time in her cell.

The release is an attempt to exonerate themselves from a tide of scrutiny by critics who suspect foul play.