Many of the journals I've published in do require a link, usually a PMID or DOI, but they're not usually part of the review process. That is, one doesn't expect academic content reviewers to validate each of the citations, but it's not unreasonable to imagine a journal having an automated validator. The review process really isn't structured to detect fraud. It looks like the article in question was in the preprint stage - i.e.: not even reviewed yet - and I didn't notice mention of where they were submitted.

Message here should be that the process works and the fake article never got published. Very different than the periodic stories about someone who submits a blatantly fake, but hand written, article to a bullshit journal and gets published.