You're more likely to see the remains of where a pay phone used to be these days than actually seeing a working pay phone.  It's hard to make money on them now that everybody has their own pay phone in their pocket.

The last time I tried to make a collect call on one I was still asked for $5.00...in quarters!

Nicolas Kantartzis owned several pay phones in the Washington area.  He was having trouble making money on them.  Most of the money he was getting was coming from the .50 kickback he got from the phone company when someone used his phones for an 1-800 toll-free number.

See, they aren't toll free.  The fee is paid by the number holder.  And .50 goes to the owner of the phone.

So Nicolas decided to set up 100 of his pay phones to make a few robocalls to 1-800 numbers.  In the 8 million call rage.  He racked up $4million.

Obviously since you're reading this he got caught.  He plead guilty in September and has payed back the misbegotten funds.

He was sentenced to three months in prison and a fine of $20,000.

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