Police in the capital Palermo stopped the suspects after they arrived with the corpses of the victims and hundreds of survivors on the Swedish coastguard ship Poseidon.
Rescuers found the bodies trapped under the deck of a wooden boat this week, shortly before 71 migrants were discovered dead in a truck in Austria.
Seven Moroccans, two Syrians and one Libyan, all acting as crew on the boat, were charged with murder based on testimony from some of the more than 500 migrants on board.
Ten survivors said they had been trapped in the hull, which was 1.5 metres (4.9 ft) high and 4 metres long, Palermo prosecutor Maurizio Scala said. They were kicked, punched and threatened with knives if they tried to get out.
"They were all forced to stay in hellish conditions below decks," Scala said.
The prosecutor's office said in a statement the deaths were caused by oxygen deprivation and inhaling engine fumes, as well as the actions of the crew.
The migrants trying to cross the Mediterranean in rickety boats are fleeing war and poverty in Africa and the Middle East, often paying hundreds or thousands of dollars for transport.
A shipwreck off the coast of Libya on Thursday killed 82 people and left about 100 unaccounted for, a spokesman for the Red Crescent humanitarian organisation said.
The 10 detained in Italy are being held in prison in Palermo while authorities consider whether to sentence them.
UN urges action
The UN Secretary-General has made a desperate plea to international governments to step up their response to Europe's migrant crisis.
Ban Ki-Moon has praised leaders and communities who have taken action, but says much more needs to be done.
"I'm horrified and heartbroken as refugees and migrants are losing their lives in the Mediterranean, Europe and beyond. We have seen countless tragedies, most recently a grim discovery of more than 70 people who suffocated inside a truck in Austria. So many people have also downed in the Mediterranean and also the Andaman sea," said Ban.
Libyan authorities have recovered at least 150 bodies after two migrant boats capsized off Libya on Thursday.
The International Organization for Migration’s chief of mission for Libya, Othman Belbeisi, said those rescued had been taken to the Libyan capital of Tiproli.
A Libyan coast guard official said hopes are fading of finding more survivors among the 400 that had been packed into the two boats.
The Libyan Red Crescent said the death toll stands at least at 76, but the UNHCR said as many as 200 people are feared dead.
"The Libyan coastguard carried out two rescue operations on Thursday morning ... off the port town of Zuwara," UNHCR spokeswoman Melissa Fleming said.
"We are hearing media reports that there are about 100 survivors. Our office in Libya is checking with the coastguard ... We believe 200 are still missing, feared dead."
Mr Ban said a collective political response is needed to address the problem at its root.
"We must understand why people are risking their lives, they are fleeing war, political instability and insecurity to seek a better future. Our first priority must be saving lives and providing humanitarian assistance. I have been to the Mediterranean and seen how difficult it is.
"I appeal to all governments to extend safe and legal channels of migration and act with humanity, compassion and in accordance with their international obligations, This is a human tragedy that requires a determined, collective political response. It is a crisis of solidarity, not a crisis of numbers. Let us do all we can to provide people in the most desperate circumstances with a measure of safety and a sense of hope," said Ban.
The deaths highlighted the dangers faced by migrants at the hands of traffickers on arrival in Europe, even if they survive perilous voyages across the Mediterranean, where more than 2,600 have drowned already this year.
"As a result of Libya's armed conflict, stopping the 'death boats' cannot be done only by Libya. There must be an international effort to curb this issue," Red Crescent spokesman in Libya, Mohamed al-Misrati, told AP news agency.
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