Your instincts are dead on. It violates Medium Rules. I tell people that all the time and suggested to the new CEO that they sweep accounts and remove those accounts from the MPP. It screws up, among other things, the algo. Then people complain they aren't making any money.
If I see truly obvious (as in followed 30k to get 15k) accounts I report them. People who don't know to check out a "writers" ratio thinks that if they have a big following they are credible and to believe everything they right which is simply not the case.