Prosecutors have said the three people suspected of being responsible for Sunday's cable-car disaster in Piedmont face charges of "extraordinary gravity".
The owner of the company that runs the cable car, the company's director and the service's operational chief have been arrested over the disaster, which killed 14 people, including two children, and left a five-year-old boy fighting for his life.
Prosecutors in the city of Verbania said the cable car's emergency braking system, which should have prevented the disaster after one of the cables snapped, was deactivated deliberately "for economic reasons in total disregard for the most basic safety rules". The emergency braking system was allegedly deactivated to stop it kicking in and halting the service after a series of recent technical problems.
In the warrant for the detention of the three, the prosecutors wrote that the operation chief "admitted to having deliberately and repeatedly inserted brake-blocking devices, deactivating the emergency braking system".
They said the director and the owner did not allow "the necessary maintenance operations" to take place.
A judge in the city of Verbania will decide on Thursday whether to grant a request from prosecutors for the three to remain in custody.
A lawyer representing the company's director has said his client did not authorize the deactivation of the system and knew nothing about it.
The five-year-old Israeli survivor, Eitan, has started to breath on his own again at a Turin hospital after being extubated.
He was said to be sitting up, looking around his room and talking with his aunt Aya on Thursday. Also with the boy was psychologist Marina Bertolotti who is helping decide how much to tell him, and when.
Eitan lost his parents, his younger brother and his great grandparents in the disaster and is set to go into the care of an aunt.
The funeral of Eitan's parents and his brother is taking place on Thursday in Israel, the family's country of origin.
The funeral of two other victims is being held in Varese on Thursday.
Transport and Infrastructure Minister Enrico Giovannini described the disaster as a "great wound for our country" as he reported to parliament on it on Thursday.
The incident has gained extensive coverage in the international media.
Leitner, the company that ran the cable-car, said it was going to stand as civil plaintiff in the case, which it said showed "very serious" negligence. It said the car's brakes had been checked on April 30.
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