Additionally , according to Suetonius , Poppaea did not divorce her husband until after Agrippina 's death , making it unlikely that the already married Poppaea would be pressing Nero for marriage . Some modern historians theorize that Nero 's execution of Agrippina was prompted by her plotting to set Rubellius Plautus on the throne . According to Suetonius , Nero tried to kill his mother through a shipwreck planned by his freedman tutor Anicetus . Instead , it took the life of Agrippina 's friend , Acerronia Polla . When Agrippina survived , he had her executed by Anicetus and framed it as a suicide . The incident is also recorded by Tacitus .