Tyrese Held in Contempt for Unpaid Child Support, Appeals Judge's $73K Ruling

5:00 PM PT -- Tyrese was released from custody Monday after his attorney Tanya Mitchell Graham filed an appeal of the judge's ruling ... according to law enforcement sources.

We're told the appeal means Tyrese did not have to pay the $73K before he was released. That does not mean he no longer owes the back child support, it's just delayed, for now. It's the same legal maneuver Tyrese and his attorney made last year when the judge ordered him to pay up the child support.

Tyrese Gibson is in custody for failing to pay the amount of child support ordered by the court ... TMZ has learned.

The singer/actor -- and dad to 5-year-old Soraya with ex-wife Samantha Lee -- was in Fulton County court Monday morning to face the judge in the ongoing child support battle, and the hearing did NOT go well for Tyrese.

Judge Kevin Farmer was clearly fed up with Tyrese's refusal to pay the $10K/month Farmer ordered him to start paying way back in April 2023 -- so, today he held Tyrese in contempt of court, the bailiff put him in handcuffs and marched him out of the courtroom.

Now, Judge Farmer did say Tyrese can square things up, and avoid jail, if he coughs up $73,000 -- which includes $7,500 for Samantha's attorney fees. Looks like Tyrese saw his arrest coming ... Sunday on IG, he called Samantha’s moves "goofy," while insisting he's totally innocent.

He says it was all just baby mama drama at the end of the day, because he says there was a prenup that covered everything for their 2020 divorce.

He also took a swipe at Samantha’s lawyers, questioning why they didn’t ask to see his bank statements, claiming that would show he's been paying child support. Instead, he says they just checked out his movies on IMDB and saw him as a cash cow to milk.

It is true Tyrese has been paying something -- as of last year, he was paying Samantha about $2,200 each month -- far short of the judge's number. Remember, Tyrese and Judge Farmer have had their battles over the years ... including a contentious showdown in 2022.