A Sydney schoolgirl was rescued from the basement of the home of a convicted killer after the American man allegedly lured her on the social media app Snapchat to fly from Australia to the US, police say.

When NYPD officers raided the home of 39-year-old Sean Price in the New York borough of Queens last week, they allegedly discovered Price and the 16-year-old girl, from Sydney's upper north shore, hiding in the basement of the property.

Price has allegedly admitted to police that he paid for the girl to fly to the US and took her on a cross-country road trip, having sex with her along the way.

Price reportedly has a lengthy criminal history, including criminally negligent homicide for the death of a passenger in a car crash. He has now been charged with a range of new offences, including rape in the third degree, police say.