Obama commutes sentence for political prisoner Oscar Lopez Rivera

US President Barack Obama commuted the sentence of Oscar Lopez Rivera, who was sentenced in 1981 to 55 years in prison for his involvement with Puerto Rican militant group FALN, which claimed responsibility for dozens of bombings in the 1970s and 1980s.

Lopez Rivera — who turned down a similar offer from President Bill Clinton in 1999 — was the last remaining member of FALN still in prison.

"Mr. Lopez Rivera is now in his 70s. He has served 35 years, nearly half of his life in prison," a White House official said. "The president determined that was sufficient amount of time to serve, although the president certainly believes that the crimes that were committed were serious."

US Senator Bernie Sanders campaigned for the release of Lopez Rivera during his unsuccessful campaign against Hillary Clinton for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Lopez Rivera, along with Chelsea Manning, was among 209 commutations and 64 pardons granted by Obama on Tuesday.

In total, Obama has commuted sentences for 1,385 federal prisoners — a total greater than that of the 12 previous presidents combined — and he is expected to announce more on Thursday, the White House official said.

Most of the commutations were a part of Obama's effort to reduce the number of people serving long sentences for non-violent drug offenses.