Five men, including Melbourne music promoter Andrew McManus, have been arrested following a joint FBI and New South Wales police investigation into international drug trafficking and money laundering.

An investigation was launched after police seized more than $700,000 from a man at a Sydney hotel in 2011.

NSW Police faced legal action for the return of the money, with a claim being made that it was payment for an international band who had toured Australia, but the case was thrown out of the Supreme Court and investigations continued.

Last year, New South Wales and Victoria police raided five properties, seizing more than $68,000 in cash and steroids.

A man is arrested at a Kellyville home in Sydney's north-west. ( Supplied: NSW Police )

Detectives said they also uncovered a plan to import 300 kilograms of cocaine from Mexico to Australia, via the United States, though the drugs never reached Australian shores.

Following a joint operation with the FBI in San Diego in California, police last night arrested McManus, 54, in Melbourne.

McManus' promotion companies have brought a number of high-profile entertainers to Australia, including Kiss, Mötley Crüe and Stevie Nicks, and he is a former manager of Australian rock band The Divinyls.

He has been charged with perverting the course of justice and making a false statement — both alleged offences in relation to the $702,000 seized — as well as participation in a criminal group, said Detective Superintendent Scott Cook, commander of the NSW Organised Crime Squad.

A 65-year-old Sydney solicitor and two other New South Wales men were also charged.

Subsequent searches at a home in Kellyville, in Sydney's north-west, uncovered cash, steroids and cannabis.

New South Wales Police are also trying to extradite US citizen Owen Hanson, 33, to Sydney so he can be charged.

He was arrested by FBI agents in the parking lot of a golf course in near San Diego, California, where he remains in custody on US federal drug charges, according to a statement from the FBI.

Money was intended for professional gambler in Sydney: police

"We'll allege that the criminal network involved has been importing cocaine to Australia [and] that approximately $5 million or so has been laundered as a result of that importation," Detective Superintendent Cook said.

"[The] $702,000 that we seized in 2011 related to that.

"We'll further allege that there was another 300kg importation proposed. That never went through."

Detective Superintendent Cook said the $702,000 was intended to go to a professional gambler working out of The Star Casino in Sydney.

"There's no suggestion that the casino was complicit in any way in regards to what that professional gambler was doing," he said.

"The professional gambler was then taking cheques from The Star Casino to Las Vegas casinos [and] cashing the cheques in Las Vegas."

Detective Superintendent Cook said the bust proved how successful "following the money" could be.

"We're really committed to that now — it provides very good results," he said.

"It is challenging, it's very difficult. That doesn't mean it's not worth doing.

"So we face many challenges jurisdictionally but we're overcoming those challenges, particularly in regards to partnerships with the FBI, with the Australian Crime Commission, NSW Crime Commission, all the state police forces and the [Australian] Federal Police."