Government out of control.
Government IS control, ultimately by threat of lethal force.
Any time we either prohibit or mandate some activity, we are threatening to kill anyone who disobeys and does not submit to a lesser penalty specified in the law.
The law, apparently, mandated paying a tax on the sale of cigarettes. This guy disobeyed the law, refused to submit to whatever penalty was specified in the tax law, and was killed. This sequence of events is a possibility with any law ... those who propose laws shouldn't forget it.