The issue here is that the deputy editor-in-chief of the journal is also an author of the paper. As such, the conflict of interest should have raised the bar to the acceptance of the paper.
Here is a business idea. Start a "Frontier Journal" published electronically as a pdf. Contact professors, grad students, etc for paper submissions. Publish their papers for a fee, say $100. The paper will buff their resumes and pad their egos. Send out proceedings as pdf to participants. Everybody profits including the environment. I have seen this scam play out.
Having such a paper mill paper on your CV will do the opposite of "boasting" your CV when people from your field look at it. Usually this happens at your PhD defense at the latest.
Here is a business idea. Start a "Frontier Journal" published electronically as a pdf. Contact professors, grad students, etc for paper submissions. Publish their papers for a fee, say $100. The paper will buff their resumes and pad their egos. Send out proceedings as pdf to participants. Everybody profits including the environment. I have seen this scam play out.