I thought the same. Either they don't have the gold, as you said. Or they're adding a lot more to the balance sheet.
Either way, something is happening.
Discussion
This reminds me of the story when German auditors attempted to audit the German gold reserves in the US and were denied access by the Fed. Months later a couple of tons of FRENCH gold arrived in Germany. Not bars with the stamp of the German Bundesbank, no French bars.
Nobody knows if the rest does actually still exists
It's so crazy to me that many continue to believe currencies should be backed by a commodity that cannot/isn't audited. What a crazy idea.