A former director at the federally funded Newark Housing Authority admitted he stole almost $600,000 by selling cell phones and tablets he bought with the agency’s money. Venancio Diaz, 56, of Jersey City, faces up to 10 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to theft from an agency receiving federal funds, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for New Jersey said Thursday. The former director of information technology at the NHA, Diaz purchased 1,509 electronic devices — mainly cell phones and tablets — between 2013 and 2021, federal prosecutors said. Diaz then activated the devices for a short p…